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J! UNITED STATES OF AMEBIC, 






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THE 



ENGLISH WORKS 



OF THE LATE 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS, M.A. 

i' 
VICAR OF LAMPETER, AND CAIO CUM LLANSAWEL, 

PREBENDARY OF ST. DAVIDS, ETC. 



A MEMOIR OF HIS LIFE, 



BY HIS SON, 

.GEORGE ARMSTRONG WILLIAMS, M.A. 

PERPETUAL CURATE OF BETTWS GARMON, CARNARVONSHIRE, 
AND CHAPLAIN OF THE COUNTY GAOL, 



'AW iff^c Kafiov [ivrjcmv. — Soph. Ajax. 



LONDON: 

CRADOCK AND CO. 

(LATE BALDWIN AND CRADOCK) 48, PATERNOSTER ROW. 



1840. 






C. WHITTINOHAVi. TOOK.S COURT, CHANCLRY USE, LONDON. 



TO HIS SCHOOL-FELLOWS, 

%W <EMume, 

WHICH MUST AWAKEN IN THEIR MINDS, AS IT AWAKENS IN HIS, 

A THOUSAND TENDER 

AND INTERESTING REMEMBRANCES, IS MOST 

AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED 

BY THE EDITOR. 



Fron, near Caernarvon, 
May '28, 1840. 



CONTENTS. 

Page. 

Memoir of the Rev. Eliezer Williams i 

Appendix to the Memoir clviii 

An Historical Essay on the Manners and Customs of the An- 
cient Celtic Tribes, particularly their Marriage Ceremo- 
nies 1 

An Historical Essay on the Taste, Talents, and Literary 

Acquisitions of the Druids, and the Ancient Celtic Bards 43 
Historical Anecdotes relative to the Energy, Beauty, and 
Melody, of the Welsh Language, and its Affinity to the 
Oriental Languages, and those of the South of Europe ... 81 
An Inquiry into the Situation of the Gold Mines of the An- 
cient Britons 143 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 
EPOCH I. 

ORIGIN OF THE BRITONS THEIR HISTORY UNTIL THE INVASION 

OF BRITAIN BY THE ROMANS. 

Chap. I. Preliminary Observations. — Ancient Documents, 
often imperfect unless assisted by facts. — The nature of 
those facts 181 

Chap. II. The Nature of the Primitive Language of Europe, 

and Language in general 1 85 

Chap. III. Progress of the Colonization of Europe, from the 
time of the Dispersion at Babel to the commencement of 
History 197 

Chap. IV. The Identity of the Cymbrians, and other spe- 
cified Nations 201 

Chap. V. The first Settlement of Britain, and by what Race 

of Men 213 



VI CONTENTS. 

Page 

Chap. VI. Of the Names of Britain, and of its Divisions .. 215 
Chap. VII. Of the Ancient Divisions of Britain, and the 

Names of the various Tribes by which it was inhabited 22 1 

EPOCH II. 

from Cesar's first invasion of Britain to the final 

evacuation of it by the romans, comprising a 

period of about five hundred years. 

Chap. I. A transient View of the State of this Island, as 
to Religion, Morals, and General Knowledge, when the 
Romans first projected its subjugation; occasionally in- 
terspersed with retrospective observations 254 

Chap. II. Observations on certain discrepances of opinion 
among some of our Modern Archaiologists, upon the 
Character of Druidism and the Tenets of the Druids, 
and upon the question, whether Writing was known to 
the Britons previously to the arrival of the Romans ..... 264 

Chap. III. State of Britain as to its Connexion or Inter- 
course with other Nations, before as well as after the 
commencement of this Epoch 269 

Chap. IV. On the Ancient Invasions of this Country ; es- 
pecially those conducted by the Romans : causes and 
eifects of the latter 276 

Chap. V. Of the Geography of Roman Britain, or the prin- 
cipal Divisions of the Country during the Government 
of the Romans : — with some additional observations . . 282 

Chap. VI. Conclusion. — Sketch of the State and Govern- 
ment of the British Provinces and Towns under the Ro- 
mans ; also of the Legionaries and Colonists. Effects 
of the Roman Conquest and Government on the State 
of the Country, and on the National Character 288 

A short Account of a Visit to the North of Ireland in the 
year 1787 297 

Prologues and Epilogues 329 



SUBSCRIBERS. 



[An asterisk is prefixed to the names of Mr. Williams's Pupils.] 

HER MOST GRACIOUS MAJESTY THE QUEEN. 

Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Kent. 

Andrews, Evan, Esq. B.A. Llandilo, Carmarthenshire 
Ansdell, John, Esq. Glaslyn, Llanelly, Brecknockshire 
Arthur, Mr. Thomas, Lion Hotel, Lampeter, Cardiganshire 
Atwood, John, Esq. Aberayron, Cardiganshire 

Bethel, The Right Rev. Christopher, D.D. Bishop of Bangor 
Burgess, The Right Rev. Thomas, D.D. Bishop of Sarum (dec.) 

(2 Copies) 
Bailie, Mrs. Market Street, Caernarvon 
Bennet, Rev. W. C, M.A. Vicar of Corsham, Wilts 
Bevan, The Venerable Archdeacon, M.A. Vicar of Carmarthen 
Bevan, Miss, Glanravon, Crickhowel, Brecknockshire 
Beynon, Rev. David, B.D. Fellow of Jesus College, Oxford 
Beynon, Mrs. Llaethliw, Cardiganshire 

Blackwell, Rev. John, M.A. Rector of Manordivy, Pembrokeshire 
Board, Mrs. Westerham Vicarage, Kent 
Bowen, Rev. Daniel, M.A. Waunifor, Carmarthenshire 
Bo wen, George, Esq. Llwyngwair, Cardiganshire. (2 Copies) 
*Bowen, Rev. John, Llanelly, near Crickhowel 
Bowen, James, Esq. Clifton, Somersetshire 
*Bowen, Lewis, Esq. 2nd Life Guards. (3 Copies) 
Bowen, Rev. T. M.A. Troedyraur, Cardiganshire 
Bowles, Rev. Canon, Bremhill Parsonage, Wilts 
Bransby, Rev. J. H. Bronhendref, Caernarvon 
Broom, Neville, Esq. Llanelly, Carmarthenshire 
Brown, F. L. Esq. Llanelly, Carmarthenshire 
Burgess, Mr. William, Merchant, Llanelly, Carmarthenshire 

Cawdor, The Right Hon. the Earl, Golden Grove, Carmarthenshire 
Cooper, Lady Astley, Gadesbridge, Herts 
Cleaver, Rev. William, M.A. Precentor of St. Asaph 
Clement, Misses, Caernarvon. (2 Copies) 

Clough, Rev. Alfred Butler, B.D. Rector of Branston, Northamp- 
tonshire. (2 Copies) 



SUBSCRIBERS. 

Cotton, Very Rev. James Henry, B.C.L. Dean of Bangor 
Crofton, Miss, Caernarvon 

Dynevor, Right Hon. the Lord, Dynevor Castle, Carmarthenshire. 

(4 Copies) 
Daniel, Rev. John, Llangedwin, near Oswestry 
Davids, Mr. David, Dryslwynfawr, Carmarthenshire 
Davies, Sir David, Marlborough House, London 
*Davies, Alban Thomas, Esq. Tyglyn Ayron, Cardiganshire 
*Davies, Rev. John, B.D. Rector of Gateshead, Durham 
Davies, Mrs. Thomas, New Broad Street, London 
Davies, Miss, Talrhyn, near Llandovery, Carmarthenshire 
Davies, Mrs. Touchet, Lloyd Jack, Green Hill, Crickhowel 
Davies, Mrs. Elizabeth, Bridge House, Aberayron, Cardiganshire 
Davies, Rev. D., Llanyblodwell, near Oswestry 
*Davies, Rev. Thomas, M.A. Tyhewyd, Cardiganshire. (2 Copies) 
Davies, Rev. John. M.A. Curate of Llanverres, Flintshire 
Davies, Rev. Morgan, Curate of Holyhead, Anglesey 
Davies, Rev. T. Millingchamp, M.A. Rector of Trevilan, Cardi- 
ganshire (deceased) 
Davies, Rev. Joshua, R.D. Vicar of Llanybyther, Carmarthenshire 
*Davies, Rev. Joshua, Rector of Brechvaugh, Carmarthenshire 
Davies, Rev. Thomas, Vicar of Llangadock, Carmarthenshire 
Davies, John, Esq. Solicitor, Llanelly, Carmarthenshire 
Davies, David, Esq. Ffrwd Vale, near Llandovery, Carmarthenshire 
Davies, Rev. Thomas, M.A. Rector of Llanddoged, Denbighshire 
Davies, Rev. R. W. Payne, M.A. Rector of Talyllyn, Brecknock- 
shire 
*Davies, Rev. Jenkin, Talybont, Brecknockshire 
Davies, G. A. A. Esq. Tretower, Coombe-du, Brecknockshire 
Davies, Edward, Esq. Glan Onney, Llangattock, Brecknockshire 
Davies, Rev. D. D., Bronfre, Ayron's Vale, Cardiganshire 
*Davies, Rev. J. H., M.A. Aberystwith, late of Oakhill Park, 

Kent 
*Davies, Rev. William, Curate of Nevern, Pembrokeshire 
*Davies, Rev. Edward Acton, M.A. Martley Rectory, Worcester- 
shire 
Davies, John I. Esq. Surgeon, Peny Groes, Caernarvonshire 
Douglas, Captain, Rhyd y fran, Ayron's Vale, Cardiganshire 
Downes, Rev. J. W. M.A. Devynock, Brecknockshire 
Drew, Mrs. Treborth, Caernarvonshire 
Druce, Alexander, Esq. London 

Edwardes, the Hon. Captain, Neuadd, Cardiganshire 
Edwards, Mrs., Brynfield, Gower, Glamorganshire 
*Edwards, Rev. J. M., Vicar of Towyn, Merionethshire 



SUBSCRIBERS. 

Ellis, R. Lloyd, Esq. Caernarvon 

*Enoch, Rev. George, Graig y don, Aberdovey 

Evans, Herbert, Esq. Highmead, Cardiganshire 

Evans, D. Beynon, Esq. Court Farm, Cardiganshire 

Evans, David, Esq. Penrhiw Galed, Cardiganshire 

*Evans, Rev. Eleazer, Vicar of Llangrannog, Cardiganshire. 

(2 Copies) 
*Evans, Rev. David, B. D. Rector of Llanllwchaiarn, Cardigan- 
shire 
Evans, Mrs. Mercy, Tan y Graig, Silian, Cardiganshire 
Evans, Rev. John, M.A. Rector of Scalford, near Melton Mowbray 
*Evans, Rev. John, M.A. Curate of Halberton, Devonshire 
Evans, Rev. John, Curate of Llanover, Monmouthshire 
Evans, Rev. William, Rector of Llanhilleth, Monmouthshire 
* Evans, Rev. T. D., Eye Vicarage, Suffolk 

Evans, Robert, Esq. M.A. (late Fellow of Jesus College, Oxford) 
*Evans, Rev. Daniel, B.D. Fellow of Jesus College Oxford. (3 

Copies) 
*Evans, Rev. Evan, Trefran, Perpetual Curate of Bettws Coed, 

Denbighshire 
*Evans, Rev. Benjamin, Vicar of Glascombe, Radnorshire 
*Evans, Rev. Thomas, Curate of Nerquis, Flintshire 
Evans, Rev. Stephen, Llandowror, Carmarthenshire. (2 Copies) 
*Evans, Rev. Thomas, Curate of Llanstephan, Carmarthenshire. 

(2 Copies) 
*Evans, Rev. John, Vicar of St. Clears, Carmarthenshire 
Evans, Rev. Thomas, Vicar of Penbrey, Carmarthenshire 
Evans, Rev. Joseph, Eglwysfair, Glantaf, Carmarthenshire 
Evans, Thomas, Esq. B.A. Rhuradar, Llandilo, Carmarthenshire 
Evans, Mr. John, Anne Street, Llanelly, Carmarthenshire 
Evans, Messrs. and Co., Stationers, Carmarthen 

Felix, Rev. Peter, Vicar of Llanilar, Cardiganshire 

Fisher, John, Esq. Great George Street, Bristol 

Fisher, Messrs. and Son, Newgate Street, London 

Foulkes, Rev. Henry, D.D. Principal of Jesus College, Oxford 

Franco, F. Freeman, Esq. Crickhowel, Brecknockshire 

Gardner, Rev. A. Downes, M.A. Vicar of Holywell, and Fellow 

of Jesus College, Oxford 
Garnons, Richard, Esq. Caernarvon 
Gee, Mr Thomas, Jun. Denbigh 
Giffard, Miss, Nerquis Hall, Flintshire. (2 Copies) 
Goode, George, Esq. Croft Cottage, Caermarthen 
Goode, H. P. Esq. Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire 
Gore, Lieutenant-Colonel, Caernarvon 



SUBSCRIBERS. 

Graham, Mrs., Blaen y Wern, Cardiganshire 
Green, Rev. George Wade, M.A. Court Henry, Carmarthenshire 
Griffiths, Rev. D. Vicar of Llanfihangel Ystrad, Cardiganshire 
*Griffiths, Rev. James, Vicar of Llangunnor, Carmarthenshire 
Griffith, Rev. Henry, M.A. Incumbent of Llandrygarn, Anglesey 
*Griffiths, Rev. Thomas, L.L. D. Hounslow, London 
Gwynne, Colonel, Monachty, Cardiganshire 
*G\vynne, Captain, Monachty, Cardiganshire 
*Gwynne, James, Esq. Pilrhoth, Carmarthenshire 
Gwynne, John, Esq. Gwern Vale House, Brecknockshire 
Gwynne, John, Esq. Kilkiffeth, Pembrokeshire 
Gwynne, Rev. T. Bevan, M.A. Vicar of St. Ishmael's, Carmar- 
thenshire 
Gwynne, William, Esq. Court, Pembrokeshire 

Hall, Sir Benjamin, Bart. M.P. Llanover, Monmouthshire 
Harries, Rev. Edward, Vicar of Llandissilio, Pembrokeshire 
*Harries, George A. Esq. Trevaccwn, Pembrokeshire 
Harries, Rev. George, Officiating Minister of St. Edrin's 
*Harries, Henry Lloyd, Esq. Llandovery, Carmarthenshire 
Harries, Rev. J., Rector of Llanthetty, Brecknockshire 
Harries, Rev. William, Incumbent of Llanstinan, Pembrokeshire 
Harries, Mr. William, Llandilo fawr, Carmarthenshire 
Hay, Mr. Edward, Pembrey, Carmarthenshire 
Hay, Mr. John, Llanelly, Carmarthenshire 
Herbert, Mrs., Rhiwbren, Cardiganshire (dec.) 
*Herbert, Rev. Watkin, Curate of Kidwelly, Carmarthenshire 
*Herbert, Rev. William, Vicar of Llansantffraid, Cardiganshire 
Hill, Mr. John, Golden Grove, Carmarthenshire 
Howel, Edward, Esq. M.D. Swansea, Glamorganshire 
*Howel, Thomas Lewis, Esq. Surgeon, Llanelly, Carmarthenshire 
*Hughes, Rev. Dan. M.A. Rector of Manafon, Montgomeryshire 
Hughes, Rev. David, M.A. Rector of Llanfyllin, Mongomeryshire 

(2 Copies) 
Hughes, Rev. Howel, M.A. Rector of Rhos Colyn, Anglesey 
Hughes, Rev. Jacob, Officiating Minister of Lanrian, Pembroke- 
shire 
Hughes, Rev. James Evans, M.A. Incumbent of Llancwstenyn, 

Denbighshire 
Hughes, Rev. Jenkin, M.A. Vicar of Aleonbury, Cambridgeshire 
Hughes, John, Esq. Alltlwyd, Cardiganshire 
* Hughes, Rev. John, Vicar of Penbryn, Cardiganshire 
Hughes, Rev. Morris, Incumbent of St. Anne's, Caernarvonshire 
Hughes, W. B. Esq. M.P. Plascoch, Anglesey 
*Hughes, Rev. William, M.A. Rector of Ciliau Ayron, dCari- 
ganshire 



SUBSCRIBERS. 

*Hughes, Thomas, Esq. Castelldu, near Lampeter, Cardiganshire 
Humphreys, Mr. David, Nant y Llan, Carmarthenshire 
Hunt, Mrs. Glangwna, Carnarvonshire 

Jenkinson, the Right Rev. John Banks, D. D. Bishop of St. 

David's 
James, Rev. James W. Rector of Puncheston and Llanychaer, 

Pembrokeshire 
James, Rev. David, Vicar of St. Mary's, Kirkdale, near Liverpool 
Jeffreys, Rev. D. W., Curate of St. Bride's Major, Glamorganshire 
Jeffries, J. B., Esq. Solicitor, Carmarthen 
*Jenkins, David Joel, Esq. jun. Lampeter, Cardiganshire 
Jenkins, Rev. Evan, Incumbent of Dowlais Chapel, Glamorgan- 
shire 
*Jenkins, Henry, Esq. Llwyn y Groes, Cardiganshire. (6 Copies) 
Jenkins, J. H. Esq. Barrister, Crosswood, Montgomeryshire 
Jenkins, Griffith, Esq. Pantirion, Pembrokeshire 
* Jenkins, Rev. John, Vicar of Whitehaven 
*Jenkins, Rev.- John, Vicar of Norton, &c. Radnorshire 
Jenkins, Rev. Thomas, Rector of Treffgarne, Pembrokeshire 
*Johnes, John, Esq. M.A. Barrister, Dolaucothy, Carmarthenshire 
Johnes, Miss, Spilman Street, Carmarthen 
*Jones, Rev. D. T. Professor of Welsh, St. David's College, 

Lampeter 
Jones, Rev. Daniel, Vicar of Llangendeirn, Carmarthenshire 
Jones, Rev. David, Curate of Battersea, Surrey 
*Jones, Rev. David, Rector of Bishopton, Glamorganshire 
*Jones, Rev. D. Lewis, M.A. Rector of Gwyddelwern, Merio- 
nethshire 
Jones, Rev. Evan, Curate of Chadwell, Essex 
Jones, G. W. Esq. Bank, Crickhowel, Brecknockshire 
Jones, Rev. H. W., Rector of Aberffraw, &c. Anglesey 
Jones, Rev. James, M.A. Manor House, Ruthin. (2 Copies) 
*Jones, Rev. James, R.D. Rector of Mathry, Pembrokeshire 
Jones, Rev. Jenkin, M.A. Llangadvan, Montgomeryshire 
Jones, Rev. John, M.A. Rector of Llanllyfni, Carnarvonshire 
Jones, Rev. John, M.A. Incumbent of Amlwch, Anglesey 
Jones, Rev. John, M.A. Rector of Llanaber cum Barmouth, 

Merionethshire 
*Jones, Rev. John, Rector of Llandderfel, Merionethshire 
*Jones, Rev. John, Curate of Denbigh 
Jones, Rev. John, M.A. Christ Church, Oxford 
Jones, Rev. John, M.A. Chaplain to the Bishop of Bangor 
*Jones, Rev. John, M.A. Curate of Oswestry, Salop 
Jones, Rev. John, Vicar of Llansadwrnen, Carmarthenshire 
*Jones, Rev. John, Vicar of Abergwilly, Carmarthenshire (dec.) 



SUBSCRIBERS. 

Jones, Joseph, Esq. Caernarvon 

♦Jones, Rev. Joseph, Rector of Rhosilly, Glamorganshire 
Jones, Lieutenant-Colonel, Ty'n y Coed, near Carnarvon 
Jones, Richard, Esq. Dinas, Caernarvonshire. (2 Copies) (dec.) 
Jones, John Jordan, Esq. Fronwen, Cardiganshire 
Jones, Isaac, Esq. Ystrad House, Cardiganshire 
Jones, Rev. Morgan, Vicar of Llangynllo 
Jones, Mrs, Llangollen, Denbighshire. (2 Copies) 
Jones, Mrs., Llanrwst, Denbighshire 
Jones, Rev. Owen, Curate of Pennal, Merionethshire 
Jones, Robert, Esq. Surgeon, Denbigh 

Jones, T. H. Esq. Neuadd fawr, Cardiganshire. (2 Copies) 
*Jones, Rev. Thomas, Vicar of Pencarreg, Carmarthenshire 
*Jones, Rev. Thomas, Perpetual Curate of Llansantffraid, Oswestry 
*Jones, Rev. Thomas, Vicar of Llanrhidran, Glamorganshire 
Jones, Rev. William Lewis, M.A. Rector of Llanengan, &c. Car- 
narvonshire. (2 Copies) 

Lisburne, the Right Hon. the Earl, Crosswood, Cardiganshire 
Latham, Miss, Crickhowel, Brecknockshire 

Lawrence, Thomas Lewis, Esq. Dyffryn Mawr, Llanelly, Cardi- 
ganshire 
Lewes, Captain, Llanlear, Ayron's Vale, Cardiganshire 
Lewis, David, Esq. M. P. Stradey, Carmarthenshire 
Lewis, David, jun. Esq. Bank House, Llandilo, Carmarthenshire 
*Lewis, D. Jones, Esq. Gilfach, Carmarthenshire 
*Lewis, David, Esq. M.D. London. (2 Copies) 
Lewis, Miss Eliza, Caernarvon 

Lewis, Rev. Edward, Rector of Llanbedr, Brecknockshire 
Lewis, Rev. John, Vicar of Llanrhystyd, Cardiganshire 
*Lew T is, Lewis, Esq. Gwynfe, Carmarthenshire 
Lewis, Major, Llan Ayron, Cardiganshire 

Lewis, Rev. William, M.A. Curate of Llangollen, Denbighshire 
Library, Jesus College, Oxford 

Little, William, Esq. Gwydyr Ucha, Carnarvonshire 
Lloyd, Rev. Charles, M.A. Rector of Bettws Bledrws, Cardigan- 
shire 
Lloyd, Rev. E. Rector of East Tilbury, Essex. (2 Copies) 
Lloyd, George, Esq. Brunant, Carmarthenshire 
Lloyd, Rev. Hugh, Rector of Llangeitho, Cardiganshire (dec.) 
Lloyd, J. Vaughan, Esq. Breunog, Cardiganshire 
Lloyd, Rev. John, Curate of Loughor, Carmarthenshire 
Lloyd, Miss, Tower Hill, Fishguard, Pembrokeshire 
*Lloyd, Rev. Thomas, M.A. Rector of Llanfair, Orllwynn, Car- 
marthenshire 
Lloyd, T. R. Esq. M.A. Queen's College, Oxford 



SUBSCRIBERS. 

Macbride, J. D. Esq. D.C.L. Principal of Magdalen Hall, Oxford 
*Marsden, Rev. Benjamin, Curate of Llangasty, Brecknockshire 
Marsden, Mr. John, Cefncefel, Carmarthenshire 
Marsden, Richard, Esq. Bryn Mawr, Brecknockshire 
*Marsden, Rev. Thomas, Vicar of Brymbo, Denbighshire 
Mason, William, Esq. M.D. Caernarvon 
Matthews, John, Esq. Penbrey, Carmarthenshire 
*Miller, W. H. Esq. M.A. Professor of Mineralogy, St. John's 

College, Cambridge 
Moore, E. T., Esq. Whitehall, Birmingham 
More, Richard, Esq. Presteign, Radnorshire 
*Morgan, Rev. D. E., Curate of Moelgrove, Pembrokeshire 
Morgan, Rev. Edward, M.A. Vicar of Syston, Leicestershire 
Morgan, Rev. J. P., Curate of Llanbeblig, Carnarvonshire 
Morgans, John, Esq. Bank, Caernarvon 
*Morgan, John, Esq. Llandovery, Carmarthenshire 
Morgan, Mrs., Llangattock Place, Brecknockshire 
Morgans, M. J., Esq. Corsham, Wilts 

Morgan, Rev. M. Rice, Curate of Llansamlet, Carmarthenshire 
Morgan, Rev. Richard, M.A. Vicar of Kiffig, Pembrokeshire 
Morgan, Mr. Thomas, Clydock Iron Works, Brecknockshire 
Morgan, Rev. William, Vicar of Caio, &c. Carmarthenshire (dec.) 
Morris, Rev. Ebenezer, Vicar of Llanelly, Carmarthenshire. (6 

Copies) 

Nanney, O. I. E. Esq. Gwynfryn, Carnarvonshire 
Nathan, Rev. Henry, Curate of Fishguard, Pembrokeshire 
Nelson, Rev. George M. B.D. Boddicott Grange, Banbury 
Neville, Richard Einion, Esq. Llangennech Park, Carmarthen- 
shire 
Nicholls, Rev. David, Rector of Llanegwad, Carmarthenshire 
Nicholls, Rev. W. T. Incumbent of Llanfihangel Aberbythych, 
Carmarthenshire 

Overton, Mrs. Llanthetty Hall, Brecknockshire 

Owen, Rev. David, Rector of Eglwys Fach, Denbighshire 

Owen, Owen Thomas, Esq. 146, Holborn Bars, London 

Parry, Sir Lo^e, P.J. G.C.H. Madryn Park, Carnarvonshire 

Parry, Morris, Esq. St. David's College, Lampeter 

Payne, Miss, Crickhowel, Brecknockshire 

Pennant, G. H. D. Esq. Penrhyn Castle, Carnarvonshire. (2 

Copies) 
Phillips, Col. J. Lloyd, Mabus, Cardiganshire 
Phillips, Rev. James, B.A. Incumbent of Winston, Pembrokeshire 
Phillips, Mrs. Spilman Street, Carmarthen 



SUBSCRIBERS. 

Phillips, Rev. Samuel, Vicar of Llanddewi, Gower, Glamorganshire 

Picton, Mrs., Iscoed, Carmarthenshire (dec.) 

Pierce, James, Esq. Navigation House, Llanelly, Brecknockshire 

Pierce, Thomas, Esq. Surgeon, Llanelly, Brecknockshire 

Powel, Lancelot, Esq. Clydach Iron Works, Brecknockshire 

Powel, Rev. W. H. Llanpumsaint, Carmarthenshire 

Price, Miss, Denbigh 

Price, Rev. James, Plas yn Llysfaen, Denbighshire 

Price, Rev. Thomas, R.D. Vicar of St. Michael's, Coombe-du, 

Brecknockshire. 
Price, W. O. Esq. Solicitor, Llandilo, Carmarthenshire 
Pridham, Mr. Thomas, Druggist, Llanelly, Carmarthenshire 
Prothero, Rev. David, Vicar of Llandilo, Carmarthenshire 
Prothero, Rev. D. Vicar of Eglyswrw, Carmarthenshire. 
Pugh, Rev. John, R.D. Rector of Castle Bigh, Pembrokeshire 
Purbrick, Rev. Lewis, M.A. Chaplain of Christ Church, Oxford 
Purser, John, esq. Rathmines Castle, Dublin. (6 Copies.) 

*Rees, Rev. Daniel, Incumbent of Aberystruth, Monmouthshire 
*Rees, Mr. Rees, CilgelL, near Lampeter, Cardiganshire 
*Rees, Rev. Rice, M.A. Fellow of Jesus College, Oxford, (dec.) 

(2 Copies) 
Rees, Rev. W. J. M.A. Rector of Cascob, Radnorshire 
Rees, Mr. William, Printer and Stationer, &c. Llandovery 
*Richards, Rev. Henry, M.A. Curate of Llanengan, Carnarvon- 
shire 
Richards, Rev. R. Rector of Caerwys, Flintshire. (2 Copies) 
Richardson, Rev. P.D. R.D. Vicar of St. Dogwell's, Pembroke- 
shire 
Roberts, E. G. Esq. Peny Bryn, Carnarvonshire 
Roberts, John, Esq. Surgeon, Bangor, Carnarvonshire 
Roberts, Richard, Esq. Shireland Hall, Birmingham 
Roberts, William, Esq. Surgeon, Carnarvon 
*Rogers, Henry, Esq. Gelly, Cardiganshire (dec.) (2 Copies) 
Rogers, I. Esq. M.D. Abermeurig, Cardiganshire 
*Rowlands, Rev. Daniel, Vicar of Llanllwch, Carmarthenshire 
Rowlands, Rev. Hugh, M.A. Rector of Llanriig, Carnarvonshire 
Rowlands, John, Esq. Plastirion, Carnarvonshire 
Rukins, Rev. Thomas, Rector of Treffgarne, Pembrokeshire 

Staunton, Sir Geo. T. Bart. M.P. Leigh Park, Hants. (2 Copies) 

Sainsbury, Rev. Mr. Corsham, Wilts. 

Saunders, F. D. Esq. Tymawr, Cardiganshire 

Sims, William Unwin, Esq. London 

Smallwood, Mrs. Fedw, Cardiganshire 

Smith, Colin, Esq. Bank, Caernarvon 



SUBSCRIBERS. 

Smith, James, Esq. Bank, Chester 

Smith, Mr. Robert, Clydach Iron Works, Brecknockshire 
Stretton, Capt. Dany Park, Llangattock, Brecknockshire 
Strick, John, sen. Esq. Swansea, Glamorganshire 
Strick, John, jun. Esq. Swansea, Glamorganshire 

Trevor, Hon. George Rice, M.P. Dynevor Castle, Carmarthen- 
shire 
Thomas, David, Esq. Llanfair, Llandyssil, Cardiganshire 
*Thomas, Rev. David, Rector of Pendine, Carmarthenshire 
Thomas, Rice, Esq. Coedhelen, Carnarvon 
Thomas, Miss, Coedhelen, Carnarvon 
Thomas, Rees Goring, Esq. Lower Tooting, Surrey 
Thomas, George Traherne, Esq. Lower Tooting, Surrey 
*Thomas, Rev. John, B.D. Incumbent of Llangennech, Carmar- 
thenshire 
*Thomas, John Howel, Esq. Aberdear, near Lampeter, Carmar- 
thenshire 
*Thomas, Rev. John, Rector of Llandilo, Abercowyn, Carmarthen- 
shire 
*Thomas, Rev. Llewelyn Lloyd, R.D. Rector of Newport, Pem- 
brokeshire 
Thomas, Pierce, Esq. R.N.Caernarvon 
*Thomas, Thomas Parry, Esq. Brookfield, Cardiganshire 
Thomas, Rev. Thomas, M.A. Vicar of Llanbeblig cum Caer- 
narvon 
Thomas, Rev. Thomas, Rector of New Moat, Pembrokeshire 
Thomas, Mr. Thomas, Bremenda fawr, Carmarthenshire 
*Thomas, Thomas, Esq. Cefncethin, Carmarthenshire 
*Thomas, Rev. Watkin William, B.D. Rector of Dinas, Pem- 
brokeshire 
*Treharne, W. W. Esq. Laugharne, Carmarthenshire 
*Tyler, Joseph, Esq. Gray's Inn, London. (2 Copies) 

Vaughan, Sir Robert Williames, bait. Nannau, Merionethshire 
Vaughan, the Hon. William, Crosswood, Cardiganshire 
Vaughan, Rev. Charles, Crickhowel, Brecknockshire 
Vaughan, Rev. Henry M.A. Vicar of Crickhowel, Brecknock- 
shire 
Vicars, Mrs. Llanfawr, Holyhead, Anglesey. (2 Copies) 
Vowe, Mrs. Aberayron, Cardiganshire 

Wynn, Sir Watkin Williams, Bart. Wynnstay. (2 Copies) (dec.) 
Warren, Very Rev. John, M.A. Dean of Bangor, (dec.) 
Webb, William, Esq. Llanelly, Carmarthenshire 



SUBSCRIBERS. 

White, Rev. H. W. A.M. Fellow of Jesus College, Oxford, and 

Rector of Dolgelly. 
Winwood, Mrs. Tyglyn Ayron, Cardiganshire 
Wise, Lieut. Edwin, R.N. St. Heliers, Jersey 
Williams, the Venerable Archdeacon, M.A. Edinburgh 
Williams, Rev. David, M.A. Rector of Llandwrog, Carnarvon- 
shire 
Williams, Rev. David, M.A. Curate of Mold, Flintshire 
Williams, Rev. David, Perpetual Curate of Llanfair Clydogau, 

Cardiganshire 
Williams, E, Lloyd, Esq. Edgebaston, Birmingham 
Williams, Rev. H. B. M.A. Rector of Llanberis, Carnarvonshire 
Williams, Rev. H. Vicar of St. John's, Swansea 
*Williams, Rev. Herbert, Curate of Llanarthney, Carmarthenshire 
Williams, Mr. Eliezer, Ynys las, Carmarthenshire 
Williams, Rev. James, B.D. Rector of Llanfair ynghornwy 

Anglesey 
Williams, John, Esq. Tyhwnt ir bwlch, Carnarvonshire. (2 

Copies) 
Williams, J. Lloyd, Esq. Surgeon, Caernarvon 
Williams, Rev. John, Vicar of Llandebie, Carmarthenshire 

* Williams, Rev. John, Curate of Marros, Laugharne, Carmar- 

thenshire 

* Williams, Rev. John, Curate of Llansadwrnen, Carmarthenshire 
Williams, Rev. Rees, Rector of Vaynor, Breconshire 
Williams, Morgan, Esq. Banker, Llanelly, Carmarthenshire 
Williams, Rev. P.B. B.A. Rector of Llanrug and Llanberis (dec.) 

(2 Copies) 

Williams, Robert, Esq. Frondeg, Bangor 

Williams, R. B. Esq. Llandilo, Carmarthenshire 

Williams, Rev. Robert, M.A. Curate of Llanbeblig, Carnarvon- 
shire 

Williams, Rev. Thomas, Rector of Llangwm, Pembrokeshire 

Williams, Mr. Thomas, Stationer, Crickhowel 

Williams, William, Esq. Aberystwith 

Williams, W. Watkin, Esq. Crickhowel, Brecknockshire 

Williams, William, Esq. Aberbaider, Llanthetty, Brecknockshire 

*Williams, William, Esq. Stone Street, Llandovery 

Williams, Rev. W. Rector of Llanarmon Dyffryn Ceiriog, Den- 
bighshire 

Williams, Rev. W. E. Incumbent of Llanrhaiadr yn Mochnant, 
Denbighshire 

Wright, Miss, Duncairn, near Belfast. (6 Copies) 

Youde, Miss, Plas Madoc, Denbighshire 



MEMOIR 

OF THE 

REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS, M.A 

VICAR OF LAMPETER. 

BY HIS SON, THE 

REV. ST. GEORGE ARMSTRONG WILLIAMS, M.A. 



" We loved, but not enough, the gentle hand 
That rear'd us." Covvper. 



MEMOIR 



OF THE 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS, M. A. 



IT has been remarked that the life of a scholar sel- 
dom abounds with adventure. He withdraws him- 
self from the din and bustle of the world, and spends 
his days for the most part in solitude and silence. 
The cursory observer who views him only from a 
distance, who has no means of being acquainted with 
him in his daily walks, or in the bosom of his family, 
can see little that makes him an object of interest, 
or that distinguishes him from the rest of mankind. 
In all cases, however, it is pleasing to think and to 
speak of individuals from whom we have derived 
solid instruction or rational amusement, and it is be- 
yond measure delightful not only to dwell upon the 
talents and attainments, but to record, as far as we 
may be able, the virtues of those to whom we owe 
obligations, which are never to be forgotten, and 
never to be repaid. It is under the influence of this 
feeling that the present writer sits down to his unam- 
bitious task ; and happy indeed would he esteem 
himself, more happy than language can describe, if 



IV MEMOIR OF THE 

he were qualified to fulfil it as he could wish. Then 
it would be a privilege and a joy indeed to make the 
excellences of a beloved parent, formed as he was to 
bless and to be blessed, more generally known, and 

" to retrace 
(As in a map, the voyager his course) 
The windings of his way through many years." 

The subject of this brief Memoir, Eliezer Williams, 
son of the Rev. Peter Williams, was born at Llandi- 
veilog, in the county of Carmarthen, in the autumn of 
1754. His father, who was descended from a respect- 
able and pious family residing at Laugharne, in the 
parish of Llansadwrnen, also in Carmarthenshire, 
married the only daughter of Mr. Morgan Morgans, a 
gentleman of small landed property at Capel Llan- 
lleian, in the same county. This union was singularly 
blessed . They had six children — three sons and three 
daughters — of whom Eliezer was the eldest. Theirs 
was indeed a well regulated household,- the abode of 
order, of kindness, of peace, and of humble unpre- 
tending piety. As with them religion was not merely 
an assent of the understanding, but a deep and 
solemn persuasion of the heart, so it was their 
unceasing solicitude to instil the best principles into 
the minds of their children, and to lay betimes the 
surest foundation for their respectability, usefulness 
and comfort in future life. 

Having been instructed at home in the rudiments 
of learning, my father was placed, when he was about 
nine years old, under the care of the Rev. John Wil- 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. V 

liams, then curate of St. Ismael's, and by that gen- 
tleman was well grounded in the Latin and Greek 
languages. After remaining with Mr. Williams two 
or three years, he was removed to the free grammar 
school of Carmarthen, then under the able superin- 
tendence of the Rev. William Higgs Barker, M.A. 
vicar of Carmarthen. In this seminary, which was 
deservedly in high reputation, he made considerable 
progress ; while by the quickness of his talents, the 
diligence with which he applied himself to his 
studies, and the suavity of his temper, he soon con- 
ciliated the attachment of his kind instructor, and 
became a general favourite with his schoolfellows. 
But though he was earnest and regular in preparing 
his lessons, there was no absence of the fondness for 
juvenile recreations, which is so congenial with the 
buoyancy and cheerfulness of youth. Hence he ac- 
quired that more than ordinary degree of bodily 
vigour, and of intellectual elasticity, for which he 
was so conspicuous in after years. 

During the time that he was at school, a circum- 
stance occurred, in which, even then, the characteris- 
tics of his mind were strikingly displayed. One 
night, just as the church clock struck twelve, as he 
was busy at his books, he was interrupted by an 
unusual noise in the house. Before he could 
speculate on the cause of the disturbance, the door 
of his room suddenly opened, and in stalked a tall 
figure wrapped in a sheet, and having its features 
concealed in a hideous mask, while it uttered undis- 



VI MEMOIR OF THE 

tinguishable and frightful sounds, that might seem 
to be those of a voice not of this world. Eliezer 
was in the first instance astounded at the appearance 
of the intruder, but after a moment's reflection he 
sprang from his seat, and raising himself into an 
erect posture, and grasping a missile that lay upon 
the table, levelled it at the apparition with so sure 
an aim, as to bring it to the ground, and at once 
to prove that it was no unearthly being. When, 
on relating the adventure, my father was asked why 
he felt no alarm, he said, that he had just been 
reading the account in Homer of Dolon's excursion 
to the Grecian camp, and the cowardice of that des- 
picable spy had produced such an effect on his 
nerves as to make him proof against every kind of 
intimidation. 

My father excelled the majority of his school- 
fellows in their most popular pastimes. He was 
rather under the common stature, but his frame was 
so remarkably muscular and robust, that he took the 
lead in all manner of sports. He was an adept at 
football, at fives, and at throwing the bar ; in the art 
of swimming he is said to have become such a pro- 
ficient as to have been able to float down the river 
Towy for several miles without landing. To this 
valuable accomplishment, for such it unquestionably 
is, he was indebted for having been the means, under 
Providence, of rescuing two of his fellow creatures 
from a watery grave : one a schoolfellow, who, 
while bathing, was seized with the cramp ; the other 



REV. EL1EZKR WILLIAMS. VI 1 

a poor industrious fisherman, who had fallen out of 
a coracle, and whom, with astonishing alertness, he 
dragged to the shore. 

Shooting was also among his favourite diversions. 
On one occasion, while he was in pursuit of game, 
his gun burst, and he was so much injured as to be 
in danger for some weeks of losing his eyesight. 
Of this accident his face bore evident memorials to 
the day of his death ; and there can be little doubt 
that it had its influence in leading him to abandon 
altogether the sports of the field. It is quite evident 
that he could not have had much leisure for such 
pursuits, for about the year 1770, while he was yet 
at school, he assisted his excellent father in preparing 
for publication his Annotations on the Welsh Bible, 
and his Welsh Concordance. It may be observed 
that, if we except a similar work of an inferior kind 
printed at Philadelphia, this was the first Concord- 
ance in the ancient British language that ever issued 
from the press. Both the Annotations and the Con- 
cordance have since passed through several editions, 
and they are still held in high estimation. 

About the years 1771 and 1772, the Rev. Evan 
Evans, an eminent Welsh scholar and Welsh bard, 
the author of " Specimens of Ancient Welsh Poetry," 
and of many other publications, was in the habit of 
frequently visiting Gelly, the residence of my grand- 
father, and with him our young student formed an 
intimate acquaintance. In investigating the struc- 
ture of his native tongue, and in learning to feel and 



V11I JUKMOIK OF THE 

to estimate its beauties, he was materially assisted 
by Mr. Evans's extensive and familiar knowledge of 
Welsh literature, as well as by his taste and elegance 
of mind. 

It was at this period also that my grandfather co- 
operated in the publication of a Welsh Miscellany, 
entitled " Eurgrawn Cymraeg :" the first periodical 
work that ever appeared in Welsh. The Rev. Peter 
Williams, and Mr. Evan Thomas, a Montgomeryshire 
poet, then resident at Carmarthen, were the joint 
editors. This magazine contained, in conformity 
with its prospectus, 1. Brut y Tywysogion, or a 
History of the Welsh Princes : 2. A Dissertation on 
Miscellaneous Subjects : 3. Poetry : 4. Intelligence, 
foreign and domestic. The poetical department 
was supplied by " Ieuan Brydydd Hir," the Bardic 
appellation of the Rev. E. Evans, — Hugh Hughes 
and Robert Hughes of Anglesey, — John Thomas, 
the father of Mr. Evan Thomas, the editor, — Mr. 
Edward Williams, alias Iolo Morganwg, — and many 
others of considerable note. Even in the days of 
his boyhood, the subject of this Memoir had wooed 
the inspiration of the Muses, and here some of his 
first poetical effusions found a place. 

Having completed his classical studies under Mr. 
Barker, he went to Oxford, and was admitted com- 
moner of Jesus' College in the year 1773. As he 
distinguished himself by his progress in literature, 
and by his manly independence of mind, he was an 
object of universal respect; and in these hallowed 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. IX 



seats he laid the foundation of friendships which he 
was accustomed to number among the choicest bles- 
sings of his life. It is well remembered by the few 
survivors who were members of the college, that at 
the public examinations he proved himself to be a 
man of genius, and a scholar ; but as this was before 
the institution, in that university, of " doctarum prce- 
mia frontium" his name does not appear in the list 
of those "qui honore digni sunt kabiti" in the Oxford 
Calendar. After the completion of his academical 
course he returned to his father's house, where he 
employed himself in a close attention to literary and 
scientific pursuits until the wished-for period arrived 
when he was to enter upon the more public duties of 
a Christian minister. 

He obtained a title to orders from the Rev. Mr. 
Pritchard, vicar of Trelech : and on Sunday, 3rd 
August, 1777, he was ordained deacon in the chapel 
of St. John Baptist, Abergwilly, by the Hon. James 
Yorke, D.D., bishop of St. David's. # An incident 
that occurred during his residence at Trelech may 
be worth recording. As Mr. Pritchard and he were 
travelling from Carmarthen to Llansawel, the dark- 
ness of the night stole upon them unawares ; the road 
was precipitous, intricate, and secluded. They lost 
their way, and were unable either to proceed or to 

* Dr. Yorke was rector of St. Martin's-in-the Fields, and dean 
of Lincoln. He became bishop of St. David's in 1744, and was 
translated to Gloucester m 1779, to Ely in 1781. He died at 
Forthampton in Gloucestershire, in 1808, in his 78th year. 



MKMOllt OF Till-; 



return. Mr. Pritchard, being naturally timid, at once 
regarded their condition as beyond hope: he became 
bewildered, and gave himself up to the sadness of 
despair. My father, perceiving his distress, did all 
he could to calm his apprehensions and revive his 
drooping spirits. " Come, come, my dear Sir," said 
he, " there is One above who, if we put our trust in 
him, will neither leave us nor forsake us in our ex- 
tremity ; those black clouds are beginning rapidly to 
disperse : I can now ascertain the points of the 
compass, and by the assistance of the stars, like the 
navigators of old, I can steer our course."* The 
result proved both the accuracy of my father's 
astronomical knowledge, and its unspeakable value. 
In after life, Mr. Pritchard was fond of adverting 
to his perilous situation, and of stating how much 
he was indebted to the self-possession and to the 
scientific attainments of his companion. 

Having for a few months served the curacy of 
Trelech, much to the satisfaction of his flock, my 
father removed, by the advice of Dr. Hoar, principal 
of Jesus' College, to a similar situation at Tetsworth 
in Oxfordshire : and on Sunday, 20th December, 
1778, he was admitted to priest's orders in Christ 
Church cathedral, by Dr. Edward Smallwell, bishop 
of Oxford. A short time after, he was chosen second 



* At that time the district for many miles round was almost 
an uninhabited wilderness : it has since been in great measure 
enclosed. 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. XI 

master of the grammar school at Wallingford, in 
Berkshire ; and in addition to that office, he under- 
took the cure of Acton, a village in the neighbour- 
hood. While at Wallingford, it was his happiness 
to be introduced to Dr. Shute Barrington, at that 
time bishop of Llandaff, and ultimately bishop of 
Durham. This excellent prelate occasionally re- 
sided in Berkshire, where he had frequent opportu- 
nities of estimating my father's powers of mind, and 
of observing his love of literature ; and through life 
my father esteemed it a high privilege to have been 
honoured with the notice of one so deservedly emi- 
nent as a scholar and a Christian. When his lord- 
ship was translated to the see of Salisbury, he would 
willingly have taken his young friend with him in 
the capacity of chaplain ; but my father, having then 
other objects in view, respectfully declined the pro- 
posal. The patronage of this estimable man would in 
all probability have opened a way to advancement 
in the church ; and my father was often heard to 
express his sorrow that he did not avail himself 
of it. 

It was about this time that hostilities commenced 
between Great Britain and France. Like many other 
young men of lively imagination and enterprizing 
spirit, my father was ambitious of seeing a little of 
the world ; and an appointment much to his taste, 
that of chaplain on board a man-of-war, having been 
tendered to him, he accepted of it with alacrity. 

In the summer of 1780 he entered both on the 



Xll MEMOIR OF THE 

duties of chaplain in his majesty's ship Cambridge, 
then under the command of Admiral Keith Stewart, 
and on those of tutor to Lord Garlies, afterwards the 
Earl of Galloway, who was nephew of the admiral, 
and midshipman in the same ship. 

In July 1781 he sailed to the North Sea with the 
squadron which was sent out for the purpose of pro- 
tecting British commerce from piracies, and of de- 
manding satisfaction of the Dutch for the insidious 
aid which they had rendered to the combined fleets 
of France, Spain, and America. 

At the beginning of 1782 he was off the Texel 
with the fleet of Lord Howe and Admiral Barrington, 
brother to his excellent friend Dr. Shute Barrington. 
In June this fleet arrived in the Downs, and in the 
course of the autumn it was dispatched again with 
a reinforcement to the relief of Gibraltar. The com- 
bined assailants, under orders from their respective 
courts, had taken their position in the Straits, that 
they might prevent any succour from being given to 
General Elliot and his heroic band, who possessed 
no means of defence against the reiterated attacks of 
the enemy, and were in danger of falling a sacrifice 
to famine. These and similar expeditions were 
sources of much gratification to my father. They 
furnished the materials of many an instructive and 
affecting tale, with which he was wont to enliven 
the winter hearth. How often has the writer of this 
imperfect Memoir hung with breathless wonder on 
his recital of romantic and heart-rending anecdotes 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. Xlll 

connected with engagements in which the Cambridge 
took a part ; how often have the members of my 
father's family wept as they have heard him expa- 
tiate with a tenderness of feeling all his own, on the 
melancholy loss of the Royal George, w T hich he saw 
go down at Spithead on the 29th August, 1782. 
This fine ship, carrying a hundred guns, and having 
eight hundred men on board, while laid on her side 
in order to have the water-pipes of the powder room 
repaired, was overset by a sudden squall. She 
filled and sunk beneath the waves in the space of a 
single minute, so that only her topmast appeared at 
the water edge. Upwards of five hundred gallant 
seamen, and " brave Kempenfelt," with several of his 
officers, were lost. To the honour of British huma- 
nity, a subscription to the amount of six or seven 
thousand pounds was raised for the widows and chil- 
dren of the sufferers. 

My father was also present at the occurrence of 
many other important events, which now find a place 
in the records of our beloved country ; but it is 
matter of regret that his Journal, in which they were 
minutely detailed, has been lost. 

After being two or three years at sea, my father, 
at the request of Lord Galloway, relinquished his 
chaplaincy, and became tutor in his lordship's family 
at Galloway House. He was afterwards, through 
the interest of Lord Galloway, presented, by Lord 
Chancellor Thurlow, to the small vicarage of Caio 
cum Llansawel, in the county of Caermarthen ; and 



XIV MEMOIR OF Till 

to this living he was instituted by Dr. Edward 
Small wood, bishop of St. David's, on the 14th 
September, 1784. 

A letter written about this time to one of his 
younger brothers will be read with interest : — 

" MY DEAR BROTHER, 

" Your situation at P — (a name which scarcely 
deserves a capital letter) cannot certainly be very 
agreeable. I am exceedingly desirous, but not ca- 
pable at present, of bettering your pasture : I have 
done what I could, but have been unsuccessful. 
You will, I hope, continue to feed your mind in the 
best manner you are able for another year, when I 
will, with the blessing of God, renew and redouble 
my efforts in your favour. 

" Get whatever books you may require from Mr. 
Ross, and bid him forward the account to me. I 
would recommend to your perusal some rational and 
well written History of England, say Goldsmith's or 
Hume's, but beware of the venom lurking in the 
pages of the latter ; also some plain and methodical 
digest of the laws and constitution of England, such 
as that of Blackstone or De Lolme, which I think you 
will find palatable and deserving of your particular 
attention. While you peruse such authors as these, 
it will be your duty to devote a considerable portion 
of the day to the classics; and above all, you should 
attend to Latin versification, till you can be said to 
be a correct and elegant scholar. These things may 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. XV 

be done nearly as well at home as at the university; 
indeed, I had entertained hopes of receiving a letter 
from you dated at the latter place : the failure I am 
confident was not occasioned by any fault of mine.* 
However, I give you credit for your perseverance ; 
you will find it always better to contemn difficulties, 
and, despite of obstacles, to aim at one point, that of 
meriting the appellation of ' Vir propositi tenax' 
Time spent in the country is no longer lost time, 
while it is well employed. You must have had 
considerable experience before you can expect to 
take a leading part in the profession which you have 
chosen, | and you have time before you to obtain your 
degrees ere your age is too far advanced. 

" The Scotch in general, I must tell you, afford 
salutary lessons of industry, economy, and perseve- 
rance. Surrounded with difficulties and depressed 
by poverty, they continue to dispute the palm of 
learning and ingenuity with the most favoured na- 
tions of Europe. Every man aims at being some- 
thing of a scholar, and every cottage betrays some 
marks of the industry of its inhabitants. I should 
wish to see some of their virtues copied in our own 
country. In front of most of their cottages may be 
seen, in the season, considerable quantities of cloth 
spread out to bleach, and in most of their little towns 



* My father devoted the proceeds of his curacy at Caio to the 
education of his brother at Oxford. 

f His brother was intended for the Bar. 



XVI MEMOIR OF THE 

there are manufactories of some kind or other. At 
Wigtown they have a carpet manufactory, and carry 
on no inconsiderable business in stocking-weaving : 
in short, every where in the course of my rides I ob- 
serve astonishing proofs of diligence and industry 
amid the most dreary and barren hills, more barren 
perhaps than the hills of Cardiganshire, but boasting 
more spirited, if not richer inhabitants, than many a 
more favoured soil. The same resolution and deter- 
mined energy which impels them in other things, 
served perhaps in some measure to carry them almost 
to an extreme at the Reformation. So great is their 
dislike to everything Romanish or antiquated, that 
they never kneel, and seldom use any respectful pos- 
ture at prayer. The same severity appears in their 
form of worship, and in the celebration of their reli- 
gious ceremonies. The service at the Kirk, which is 
their established church, is similar in all respects to 
that of the most rigid of the old Presbyterians. They 
have no pews, no elegant seats, the walls of the house 
of prayer are seldom plastered, the roof is covered 
with no ceiling, and the worshippers are called to- 
gether by the sound of one feeble toned bell only. 
I am rather surprised that their prejudices should 
suffer them to use that. The marriage ceremony, if 
so it can be called, is always performed in private 
houses, and occasionally by a lay elder. At their 
funerals they have no reading or preaching, but a 
number of the deceased's friends assemble together, 
eat and drink at the house, carry the corpse to the 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. XVII 

grave, land disperse. This is all they have substi* 
tuted for a ceremony which is very justly regarded as 
the most solemn and instructive in the Church of 
England. 

" The people in general are not opulent, but they 
have a numerous host of lords and esquires, some of 
whom possess extensive estates, and are even what 
the world calls rich. Their neat country seats, in the 
midst of barren heaths, exhibit a beautiful contrast to 
the country around, and form a prospect by no means 
unpleasant at this season of the year. The weather 
is now delightful, and be assured I am not backward 
in taking advantage of it; riding, walking and swim- 
ming are my usual exercises. Had I a house here of 
my own, I would press you to visit me ; but what can 
a poor dependant do ? 

" Believe me however, my dear brother, ever yours 
affectionately, " E. Williams* 

" Galloway House, June 22, 1785/' 

With the exception of the eldest son, Lord Garlies, 
who was in the navy, as has been already noticed, 
the whole of the young family, both sons and 
daughters, amounting to five or six in number, were 
for some time under my father's superintendence ; 
and he instructed them (how assiduously and with 
what ability it is unnecessary to say) in the different 
branches of ancient and modern literature, according 
to their several ages and destinations. Though all 
looked up to him with respect and attachment, it is 

c 



XVlil MEMOIR OF THE 

natural to suppose that among so many he had bis 
favourites ; at least he could not but feel a peculiar 
interest in such as were not less remarkable for their 
talents, application and docility, than for their 
amiable dispositions. He was often heard, for in- 
stance, to speak of the Honourable Charles James 
Stewart as a young man of the richest promise, 
likely to rise at some future period to eminence and 
distinction. His anticipations have been amply 
realized ; although it was not the will of Providence 
that he should live to congratulate the object of his 
care and of his regard, on being placed in the ex- 
alted station which he now fills with so much credit 
to himself, and with such signal advantage to his 
fellow creatures.* 



* Since this was written, Dr. Stewart has paid the last debt of 
nature. The " Montreal Gazette" for Sept. 1837 thus announces 
the event : 

" This most excellent man and venerable prelate died on the 
19th July last, at the house of his lordship's nephew, the Earl of 
Galloway, in the sixty-third year of his age. The amiable quali- 
ties, Christian virtues, and apostolic life of this truly good shep- 
herd of the Church of England, in these provinces, are so well 
known to the humblest worshipper in that church, that it is quite 
unnecessary for us, if we were adequate to the task, to dwell upon 
the numerous excellences of this faithful and zealous servant of 
Christ. But we cannot conclude this brief record of the lamented 
death of the late lord bishop of the diocese, without bearing testi- 
mony, though members of another church, to the high esteem in 
which his lordship was held by every class and persuasion, 
throughout both provinces. The church of which he was a pre- 
late, never embraced a more pious and charitable disciple, and 
never lost a more ardent and devoted friend and supporter." 



REV. ELIEZEU WILLIAMS. XIX 

In the opening mind of the Honourable William 
Stewart, he also felt assured there was the germ of 
no ordinary excellence ; and it was with a mixture of 
pride and of delight that he saw how honourably he 
acquitted himself as a scholar and as a gentleman, 
on the great theatre of the world ; and how de- 
servedly he obtained, from judges of unquestionable 
discernment, the high encomium of being one of the 
bravest and most accomplished officers in the British 
army. This estimable man returned to his native 
land, after an absence of some years, with a constitu- 
tion undermined and broken by the hardships and 
sufferings to which he had been exposed in the 
public service. He died on the 7th January 1827, 
rich in faith and hope, and amidst the heartfelt 
lamentations of all who knew him. 

Both he and his elder brothers frequently corres- 
ponded with my father. Their letters were replete 
with information, and were always written in a spirit 
of tender gratitude and affection. It is to be regretted 
that in the progress of years most of these communi- 
cations have shared the fate which awaits all perish- 
able things. Two or three, however, from the pens 
of the Hon. Charles Stewart, and the Hon. William 
Stewart, have escaped the ravages of time, and 
although they may contain nothing of extraordinary 
interest, they may perhaps afford some gratification 
to the reader, and will therefore be inserted in the 
Appendix. 

My father was naturally of a contented and happy 



XX MEMOIR OF THE 

frame of mind. He seldom indulged in bitter and 
unavailing regrets for the past, or in dark and melan- 
choly forebodings as to the future, though he had as 
warm, generous and tender a heart as ever throbbed 
in a human bosom — a heart tremblingly alive to the 
misfortunes and sorrows of others, whatever might be 
their rank or station in the world. That he was 
bound to the home of his childhood by the most 
sacred and endearing ties of filial duty, and fraternal 
affection, and that he always took a lively interest in 
the well-being of the different members of his family, 
is abundantly proved, were there no other evidence, 
by the tenor of the letters which, from time to time, 
he addressed to them. Some of these will be brought 
under the reader's notice. 

During his residence in Scotland, a sister to whom 
he was particularly attached, was visited with an 
alarming, and, as it proved, fatal illness, brought on 
by her having slept in a damp bed, while accom- 
panying her father on a journey through Merioneth- 
shire. All the means that human skill, assiduity, 
and tenderness could devise, were resorted to in 
vain. After lingering for some months, she at length 
bade this vain world adieu, and, through the rich 
mercy of her God, passed into those realms of light 
and love, and glory, and blessedness, where grace 
will be triumphant, and no sorrow is. 

" O'er a lovelier form 
Than her's earth seldom closed, nor e'er did Heaven 
Receive a purer spirit from the world." 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. XXI 

The stroke was a severe trial to all with whom 
she was connected, nor least among them to the sub- 
ject of this imperfect memoir. Her father wrote a 
hurried letter to him, dated Feb. 1786, in which he 
says : 

" Your dear sister Margaret has taken her leave of 
us, having exchanged a mortality of pain and sorrow 
for an immortality of heavenly happiness. Be not 
bowed down, my son, with grief not assuaged, nor 
weep for that which ought rather to give you joy, 
as her departed spirit is triumphing in its victory 
over death and the grave ; she lost all her murmur- 
ing, and often expressed a wish, in a humble, 
patient manner, ' to be present with the Lord.' 
With her dying breath she sung, 

" Rwy'n gweled bob dydd' 
Mai gwerthfawr yw ffydd 
Pan elwy i borth angeu 
Fy angor i fydd." 

Her remains were taken in a hearse to Llandiveilog, 
and deposited near her sister's coffin." 

A singular occurrence, that may deserve recording, 
took place in connection with the death of this excellent 
young person. Her father, some time before, enter- 
taining no expectation that her dissolution was so 
near, had left her in a state of extreme debility, and 
gone on one of his usual preaching circuits, intending 
to be absent for several weeks. As soon as the poor 
sufferer had breathed her last, one of the men servants 
was despatched to him with the melancholy intelli- 



XXII MEMOIR OF THE 

gence. The messenger had not proceeded many 
miles before he met his master, who was returning 
home. Mr. Williams, having been informed of the 
sad event, and having inquired as to the precise 
time at which it took place, exclaimed, " I knew it." 
He added no more, and the man was in utter 
amazement. Mr. Williams pursued his way in deep 
affliction : on his arrival at home, he was more 
explicit. He said, that he had dreamed on the night 
and the very hour, as far as he could ascertain, of 
his daughter's death, that he repaired to a seaport 
for the purpose of taking leave of her, as she was 
about to undertake a voyage to a distant clime ; 
that after tenderly bidding him farewell, she stepped 
on board a vessel, and immediately sailed off; that he 
stood on the pier, gazing in poignant sorrow, until 
the white sails, as he expressed it, disappeared in 
the distance; that, as soon as he awoke, he was 
fully persuaded of the true interpretation of the 
vision, and directed his steps homeward, without 
delay, instead of proceeding on his journey. 

The subject of dreams, much as it has employed 
the thoughts of philosophical inquirers, is one of 
the problems which have hitherto baffled all investi- 
gation. The writer is far from being disposed to as- 
cribe the dream in question to supernatural influence ; 
and as no theory which he has seen can account for 
it, he satisfies himself with the belief that it is be- 
yond human knowledge to comprehend the power 
which the mind is capable of exercising, when the 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. XXII L 

view of external things is entirely shut out, and it is 
left as completely as possible to its own workings. 

My father's letter to my grandfather, on occasion 
of this sad bereavement, can neither be transcribed 
nor read without emotion. 

" Galloway House, 
" MY DEAR FATHER, Feb. ~ » 1786 - 

" My whole life had been employed in the pursuit 
of one favourite object, the acquisition of the means 
of adminstering to the comfort and happiness of my 
friends. Among them there was one whom I never 
forgot: of her I certainly say that I always hoped 
to be the humble instrument either of solacing her 
under her affliction, or of contributing to hasten her 
recovery. I never thought of forwarding my own 
interest, without exulting in the idea that I should 
enjoy my sister's pleasing conversation in advanced 
life, as I enjoyed it in my younger years ; to have her 
a witness, and a sharer, as I fondly imagined, of my 
prosperity ; to render her, for the remainder of her 
days, to the extent at least of my ability, comfortable 
and happy. 

" Happy, indeed, I am firmly persuaded, she is, 
more so than it could be in my power to render her, 
but very differently so from what I delighted in pic- 
turing to myself. It is no doubt to wean us from the 
world, to direct our views to nobler objects, to raise 
our attention to sublimer and better pursuits, that 
the Disposer of events thus delights to counteract our 



XXIV MEMOIR OF THE 

designs, and disappoint our hopes. And it must be 
confessed that the means seem to be well calculated 
to answer the end in view. Whom would not such 
a blow, from such a quarter, and in so tender a part, 
really afflict? Whom would not such bitterness 
of sorrow wean from the vanity of sublunary things ? 
What pleasure or satisfaction is honour or aggran- 
dizement capable of affording me now? Despite of 
the precepts of human philosophy, despite of the 
far more valuable and far more effectual lessons of 
Christianity, can we help feeling, is it possible not to 
feel, something beside resignation at being doomed 
to linger out the remainder of our tedious days des- 
titute of the nearest and dearest, I had almost said 
of our relations ? 

" But I am in danger of forgetting that this was to 
be a letter of consolation : and consolation is what 
I am ill calculated to give. You do not, however, my 
dear father, stand in need of it. The same vigorous 
faith in the inexhaustible mercies of Heaven, the 
same blessed hopes, the same anticipated fruition of 
the unalloyed happiness prepared by the Most 
High, for them that love him, which have been 
visibly your support through the embarrassments of 
life, and which will infallibly be your defence against 
all the terrors of death, will comfort you under this 
and every other trial with which a wise God may be 
pleased to visit you. May we profit by your ex- 
ample, and be enabled under every dispensation of 
Providence, however distressing and inscrutable, to 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. XXV 

submit implicitly to the divine will, be resigned as 
you are, and faithful to our heavenly Master as you 
have ever been ! Admitted into a closer communion 
with the Father of spirits than the generality of 
mankind, you can interpret those dealings of his 
hand which appear mysterious to us ; can discover 
mercy where we apprehend judgment, and kindness 
where we may complain of severity. May our 
dependence and our affections be thus placed where 
they ought, and then we shall not expect to find 
enduring happiness in those who were given us 
merely as temporary comforts, nor repine when the 
fragile reeds on which, in our weakness, we had 
leaned, are removed, in order, perhaps, to induce us 
to depend upon a surer and a better support ! 

" Happy are they who have this confidence in the 
goodness of God, when deprived of their dearest 
friends ! Instead of murmuring against Heaven, they 
will rejoice that the objects of their fondness died 
happy, and that at their departure they bore the 
appearance of " good and faithful servants" entering 
triumphantly " into the joy of their Lord." May 
we be endued with the same exalted hopes, and 
some portion of the same consolatory faith in the 
mercies of our Redeemer, that when our best friends 
are torn from us, we may consider them as delivered 
from affliction, as removed to regions where, among 
the just made perfect, they will forget all their pains 
and sorrows ! And is it possible to indulge the 
hope that we may be permitted to share in the 



XXVI MEMOIR OF THE 

blessedness to which she whom we mourn has been 
called ? Is it possible for friends, separated once by 
death, to meet again, and to taste happiness in each 
other's society? — for children of the same earthly 
father, to meet, to know, and to be known, and to 
glory in the same Redeemer? This would be some 
consolation to us. But you want none. It is a 
matter of the greatest triumph to you to have added 
to the number of the chosen celebrators of our Re- 
deemer's praise. May you see the rest of your 
children live as she has lived, and die as she has 
died ! and may you never have cause of woe, even 
from your unworthy son, 

"E. Williams." 

My father, in addition to his duties as a tutor, oc- 
casionally devoted himself to labours of another kind. 
Lord Galloway had been for some time occupied in 
investigating the pedigree of his ancestors, for the 
purpose of establishing, if possible, his claims to the 
English peerage. He had met with unlooked-for 
opposition on the part of Andrew Stuart, Esq., who 
asserted a right to the honourable distinction, and 
on that account, as well as owing to the loss of 
several valuable and important documents, which 
either had been destroyed or were inaccessible, the 
task proved more difficult than was at first antici- 
pated. For these reasons my father was solicited to 
bestow on it a larger portion of his time than would 
otherwise have been necessary. As, however, he was 



REV. EL1EZER WILLIAMS. XXV11 

then on the point of completing a union which had 
long been the object of his wishes, and which he 
had always regarded as among the happiest circum- 
stances of his life, he determined to resign his ap- 
pointment in Lord Galloway's family, and he was 
anxious, as appears from the following letters, that 
his brother should succeed him. 

" Galloway House, 
" MY DEAR BROTHER, Feb. 8, 1792. 

* * * # j would have w r ritten sooner but that I 
waited to be able to inform you with certainty of my 
intended journey to London. I cannot yet, however, 
say more on the subject, than that I mean to go some 
time next month. The eldest of the sons now at 
home (Charles) enters Corpus Christi College this 
term, and I am requested of course to accompany 
him to London. Either the other sons are thought 
too young to pursue similar studies, or some plans 
are in agitation unknown to me : all the information 
I may gather, you shall have when we meet. In the 
meanwhile I must beg you will be resigned and 
contented, not without hopes that at parting I may 
have something decided in your favour. At any 
rate, I shall have the satisfaction to think that I have 
done all in my power for you ; and that I have dis- 
charged my duty faithfully while engaged here, so that 
as far as my connection with mankind is concerned,. 
I may say with the old Roman, ' we cannot command 
success, but we will do more, we will deserve it.' 



XXV111 MEMOIR OF THE 

" I have written to my friend Pritchard by this 
day's post; I hope he will not be sorry to receive my 
letter, or to receive me, when I reach town ; though 
many years have elapsed since we met, and few letters 
have passed between us. Indeed, I have experienced 
so many changes that I know not whither to look for a 
real friend. This should convince us of the absur- 
dity of placing too much reliance on the mutable 
objects of a mutable world — Donee er is felLv, &c. 

" You used to have a strong mind ; let me see that 
you are capable of exerting it, both for your conso- 
lation and for my own ; prove to me that you are not 
destitute of the feelings and affections of a brother, 
and you will find me on all occasions disposed to 
make you every grateful return. 

" You may address your letter to me as usual, 
though not under cover, but by the common post ; 
as the family commenced their journey this morning, 
and I know not how to address them until they 
write. I hope you enjoy good health, have every 
thing agreeable to your wishes, as far as your pre- 
sent situation will admit, and place your happiness 
beyond the reach of mutability and disappointment. 
Should better things than we look for turn up, well ; 
if not, we must be resigned. Adieu ! believe me 
ready and impatient to send you better news ; when 
I have it not, what can I do but write myself your 
very affectionate brother, " E. Williams. 

" Rev. Peter Williams, 
Burford, Oxon." 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. XXlX 

" Galloway House, 
" MY DEAR BROTHER, March 11, 1792. 

" You see I am still here, and until Lord Galloway 
writes, which I daily expect, the time of my depar- 
ture will be quite uncertain. We shall spend some 
time on the road, as we have several visits to pay ; 
among others to Lady Catherine Graham, young 
Stewart's sister ; so that my arrival in London will 
be quite as uncertain as my departure from this 
place, and I cannot, at least at present, specify any 
time for our meeting. 

" If I find it possible to make any stay at Oxford, 
I shall take care to write you word ; if not, you may 
expect I will lose no time in paying you a visit at 
Burford. Be assured it is an interview to which I 
have long looked forward with much pleasure ; and 
I have no doubt that, after so long an absence, you 
will give me a welcome reception. 

" To stimulate Lord Galloway in his application 
for you to the Lord Chancellor, I proposed, as you 
formerly wished, to resign Caio in your favour, on 
condition that his lordship ensured your presentation 
to that living, taking my chance for another appoint- 
ment from the same quarter. Indeed, I so far urged 
him, as to promise, in case he thought of you, not to 
trouble him for a prebend, which he once offered to 
procure for me. So you see I do not forget your 
interest. — Your affectionate brother, 

" E. Williams. 
" Rev. Peter Williams, 
Burford, Oxon." 



XXX MEMO! It OF THE 

A short time after the date of the foregoing letters, 
my father married Mademoiselle Anne Adelaide 
Grebert, a native of Nancy in Lorraine, with whom 
he had become acquainted during his residence at 
Galloway House. She appears to have possessed a 
cultivated mind and great kindness of disposition. 
Her parents, who were royalists of considerable rank, 
were obliged, like so many other objects of revolu- 
tionary fury during the disturbances in 1790, to seek 
refuge in England. 

My father soon fulfilled his promise of visiting 
Burford. Mrs. Williams accompanied him ; and his 
brother, who had previously heard nothing of the 
marriage, evinced, on seeing him, as much astonish- 
ment as gratification. After remaining here a few 
days, the happy couple travelled to South Wales, 
where my father's friends resided. For some reason 
or other, he had not informed his parents of the im- 
portant step which he had taken, and he seems to 
have been determined to surprise them. It was late 
when he and his bride reached Carmarthen ; but the 
darkness of the night did not daunt them from pro- 
ceeding towards the place of their destination, which 
was a few miles further on. The roads were rugged 
and narrow. When they were within a few yards of 
Gelly, the postchaise broke down. The inmates of 
the house, having for some time retired to rest, were 
roused from their slumbers by the crash of the 
carriage, and by the loud jargon of strange voices in 
a foreign tongue, not a syllable of which they were 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. XXXI 

able to understand, and they were at a loss to 
imagine what could be the cause of the disturbance. 
The circumstance of the appeal to their hospitality 
being from French people, with whose nation Great 
Britain was then at open war, had no tendency 
to lessen the consternation, or to soften the hearts of 
the besieged. The baying of dogs, and the shouts of 
men who had come to the assistance of the strangers, 
were by this time tremendous. At last, " It is your 
son Ely that is here," was heard above the storm. 
These accents no sooner reached the ears of the old 
people, than hostilities gave way to the most cordial 
welcome. 

My father remained with his parents two or three 
weeks. He then returned to London, and entered 
upon the duties of evening lecturer at All-Hallows, 
Lombard-street, as well as upon those of chaplain 
and private secretary to a gentleman of independent 
property, of the name of Blakeney.* But he had 
not been thus employed much above a year, before 
he was again solicited by Lord Galloway to take a 
leading part in the genealogical researches to which 
allusion has already been made. In order to facili- 
tate this object, he was prevailed upon to remove to 
Edinburgh. Here he had free access to the Scotch 

* Mr. Blakeney seems to have been a truly amiable man, hos- 
pitably inclined in the extreme. He was eldest son to the Hon. 
William Blakeney, lieut. -general to his majesty's forces, colonel 
of his majesty's Inniskillen regiment of foot, and lieut.-governor of 
Minorca. 



XXXtl MEMOIR OF THE 

Register Office, and to other public and private re- 
positories, and ultimately, as will be seen, his 
labours were crowned with complete success. 

About the year 1794, he published a pamphlet 
entitled, " A Genealogical Account of Lord Gal- 
loway's Family." Soon afterwards three other works 
upon the same subject appeared from his pen, under 
the several titles of a " View of the Evidence for 
Lord Galloway;" "Notes on the State of Evidence 
respecting the Stewarts of Castlemilk ; ' and " a 
Counter Statement of Proofs. " Each of these pub- 
lications was highly panegyrized for ingenuity and 
acuteness, by the author of a work entitled, " The 
Genealogy of the Stewarts Refuted, in a Letter to 
Andrew Stuart, Esq., M. P."— " Accounts of indivi- 
duals, as it appears to me," observes the author, 
*■ may be drawn up after three different methods : 
first, as simple genealogy ; secondly, as biography, 
properly so called ; and thirdly, as biographic 
genealogy ; by which may be understood a union 
of both. Of the first sort, the ' State of Evidence for 
Lord Galloway,' proceeding from the pen of the Rev. 
Mr. Williams, is, in my judgment, an admirable spe- 
cimen. In that work there is no perplexity of detail, 
no admission of extraneous matter. The deduction 
of the various races is regular and luminous ; the 
style neat and simple ; clear, without wasting itself 
in diffusion, and correct, without rising to exuberance 
of ornament." 

In addition to these works, my father drew up, in 



REV. KLIEZER WILLIAMS. XXXlll 

the form of a letter to Lord Galloway, which was 
afterwards published, " A Report of the Dangerous 
State of Garliestown Bay, and of its many capabili- 
ties of improvement, shewing the necessity of con- 
structing a Pier," &c. He commences with a geolo- 
gical description of the whole coast. He then points 
out the practicability of forming a harbour that 
might afford shelter to several hundred sail of ship- 
ping : from the depth of water his majesty's ships 
and cruizers would be able to lie in it with safety ; 
and as there would be also room for them to " beat 
out" when the wind was " right in," this would ope- 
rate as an effectual check to smuggling. After sug- 
gesting various schemes for the better cultivation 
of the soil, and making several nice calculations as 
to the first outlay, and the subsequent advantages 
and profits, he goes on to observe ; " In examining 
plans of this nature, it becomes an important question, 
what benefit will accrue from the completion of it, 
so as to reimburse the expenses incurred ? The only 
advantage which can accrue to your lordship is from 
an additional rent of the adjoining farms ; for as to 
tenements situated in the interior parts of the country, 
they could not be much benefited by removing the 
harbour to a greater distance from them. The ad- 
jacent lands, by every information I could procure, 
appear to have been lately let on leases of nineteen 
years. From these no returns can be expected, to 
repay the outlay for facilitating the carriage of ma- 
nure, in less than twenty years. So that any money 

d 



XXXIV MEMOIR OF THE 

expended at present for the purpose must lie dormant, 
at least till the expiration of that period. The more 
distant part of the country appears susceptible of 
greater improvement, and capable of making a 
quicker return. So extensive a tract of ground, ab- 
solutely in the state of nature, presents an inex- 
haustible mine of wealth, and seems to court the 
hand of industry. Let good roads be carried through 
it, and let the farmers be encouraged to be liberal 
in enclosures and in the use of manure, and of the 
plough, and the value of the land in a few years may 
increase in a tenfold proportion. 

" But it is impossible to leave this subject without 
your lordship's attention to the moss of Cree. This 
tract of land offers the most flattering prospect. It 
consists, perhaps, of two thousand acres, at present 
not worth threepence an acre; in a few years it might 
be rendered worth twenty shillings an acre, for the 
first two or three crops would amply compensate for 
every previous labour. By way of experiment, let 
any number of acres, a hundred for instance, be 
measured off from that part of the moss adjoining the 
river ; let it be subdivided into smaller inclosures of 
about five acres each. Let a deep ditch be formed 
on all sides of the smaller enclosure, with drains fal- 
ling into them wherever drains may be deemed ne- 
cessary. The contents of the ditches might be 
thrown up for mounds, and planted at leisure with 
willows, alder, and such trees as flourish in a marshy 
soil. The enclosure being thus formed, the surface 



REV. ELIEZEll WILLIAMS. XXXV 

may be breast-ploughed and burnt, the ashes scat- 
tered on the land, and covered with a good coat of 
lime, and in a favourable year such a crop of corn 
might be expected from it as would nearly repay the 
whole expense of draining, &c.- Owing to the na- 
tural depth of the soil, there can be no danger of 
exhausting it. The system of husbandry might be 
adopted, for years, without any detriment to the 
land. 

" For the quantity of lime necessary for such a 
purpose, we must naturally look to Whitehaven. 
Every inquiry has been made relative to the price of 
lime. It is generally sold at the rate of fourpence- 
halfpenny per bushel at the kiln, and on an average 
at the rate of sevenpence per bushel at the ship's 
side. The difference of expense is occasioned by the 
rate of cartage, which increases in proportion to the 
distance of the kiln from the water. As to the 
freight to Scotland, the most moderate terms yet 
mentioned come from Douglas of Garliestown ; his 
sloop carries 500 bushels, and he expects to clear 
£12 by every trip, which is nearly at the rate of five- 
pence-farthing per bushel. 

" As to any calculation of the profit arising from 
the whole business, there are so many secrets of trade 
that it is difficult to obtain any data to go upon ; but 
on the fairest computation, after every necessary de- 
duction for labour, carriage, freight, &c, the net 
profit cannot exceed twopence per bushel. To un- 
derlet it, has been suggested as the safest plan for 



XXX VI M KM 01 II OF TIIK 



the renter of a kiln, and to stipulate, if possible, for 
so many thousand bushels from the tenant free of 
every expense. Another expedient is to contract 
with a species of labourers, termed borers, who pre- 
pare the materials, and manufacture the lime, at so 
much per 100 bushels. Then there is some danger 
of imposition ; for, in order to save labour, they might 
burn the lime imperfectly, or, in their choice of a 
quarry, might consult the ease of acquisition rather 
than the excellence of the stone. In any other mode 
of managing matters, the risk of imposition may be 
still greater. The professional limeburners are 
generally agriculturists, who engage their servants in 
that business at a period of the year when they cannot 
be better employed. 

" Should the measure be adopted, it may be ex- 
pedient to erect a building over every kiln, in such a 
form that its superstructure may resemble a cone. 
By these means the coals necessary for the operation 
may be secured without any fear of depredations, 
and the business carried on at all seasons without 
apprehension of having the kiln extinguished by the 
rain. A storehouse at a convenient distance from 
the water may also be necessary, otherwise the lime 
must, at a considerable loss, be frequently left exposed 
to the severities of the weather ; or the hand of the 
manufacturer be often stopped while he waits the 
arrival of shipping. The landing on this side of the 
water will in time, it is hoped, be every way conve- 
nient; a circumstance in which the quay atGarliestown 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. XXXVll 

would have its use. It is now hoped that govern- 
ment must see their advantage in forming a good 
harbour here.' , ***.-* 

At the time that the report was published, my 
father also drew up a petition to government on the 
same subject. A draft of this petition was presented 
by Lord Galloway to the king, to which circumstance 
an allusion is made in one of his lordship's letters. 
Each of these documents met with a very favourable 
reception. The most important of the suggestions 
which they contained were adopted by the inhabi- 
tants ; the prayer of the petition was granted ; and 
Garliestown is at present as flourishing a town as 
any of its size on the coast. 

While my father was engaged in these labours, it 
pleased the Supreme Disposer of events to visit him 
with a severe affliction. His little boy, an only 
child, not more than thirteen months old, was taken 
ill and died. One day he was fondling it on his 
knee, as was his habit, particularly during its sick- 
ness, when, all at once, it was seized with convul- 
sions, and instantly expired. Mrs. Williams was 
at that time seriously indisposed, and this stroke was 
more than her tender frame could bear. She sur- 
vived it only a few short weeks. Her death is thus 
recorded in " The Gentleman's Magazine" for Feb- 
ruary 1796 : " Died at Edinburgh, Anne Adelaide 
Grebert, an emigrant, and native of Nancy in Lor- 
raine. She was married, 1792, in London, to the 
Rev. Eliezer Williams, M. A., vicar of Cynvil Gaio 



XXXV1U MEMOIR OF THE 

and Llansawel, in Carmarthenshire, South Wales, 
and chaplain to the Earl of Galloway. In very 
trying situations, and during a severe and tedious 
indisposition of her husband's, she exercised towards 
him unabating and unequalled tenderness and affec- 
tion ; and manifested the most unaffected piety to- 
wards God, and the most cheerful resignation to 
the dispensations of his providence on the death of a 
most beautiful little boy, thirteen months old. Both 
were buried in the Canongate." 

In after years, my father was accustomed occa- 
sionally to dwell on the recollection of this period of 
his life with much seriousness and emotion. Al- 
though the constitution of his mind was vigorous, 
far above the ordinary standard, he felt these to be 
severe and awful bereavements. 

The following letter may serve to shew how much 
his friends regarded him as an object of sympathy : 

" 14, Camden Street, 
" MY DEAR SIR, 27th Jan. 1796. 

"An attempt to console you for an irreparable loss 
would be highly impertinent in me. Yet may not 
one who has experienced vicissitudes in life, and 
been deprived of parents and children dearly be- 
loved, venture to remind you where comfort may be 
found. An imbecile mind will be solaced by com- 
pany, amusements, and trifles that call it away, for 
the moment, from contemplating the object of its 
grief. But yours is not of that character. Indulge 



REV. ELIEZEK WILLIAMS. XXXIX 

it then, dwell upon the virtues, the amiable and af- 
fectionate disposition, the animated though Christian 
resignation of the dear departed. Exert your men- 
tal powers, and imitate her. Nature must take her 
course ; it is impossible to counteract her totally, 
without a violence which injures those whom it is 
meant to assist. 

" Your darling boy ! surely you must be convinced 
that our blessed friend was spared many a severe 
pang in her last moments, by knowing that the 
little innocent was in bliss My dear Sir, you can- 
not form an idea of the agonizing apprehensions a 
parent feels at the thought of leaving a helpless in- 
fant in a world of sin and misery. You yourself, 
though sorely smarting under the bereavement, 
must, upon reflection, acknowledge it is best. I 
know it. One of my six children, the first who lived 
to prove the fascinating power of dawning reason, 
had so entwined herself with my very existence, that 
when it pleased the Almighty to take her from me, 
I thought, as every one did, that I should have sunk 
beneath the stroke. I had at one time, when Mar- 
cella lived, a dangerous illness : anxiety for her was 
my greatest pain. God was pleased to restore me, 
to shew me my error, and my want of confidence in 
him. I outlived her who had been my chief concern, 
and was blessed with two more, who have since fol- 
lowed her to the bright realms of light and glory. 
I thought, as you do, that there was nothing left in 
this world worth living for. However, there is that 



xl MFMOIK OF THE 

in heaven ' for which we bear to live, 7 and to lead to 
which our afflictions are as ' paths of peace.' 

" How could you think of apologizing for the sub- 
ject of your letter? For although it brought with it 
pain and sorrow, it greatly flattered me by shewing 
you distinguished how sincerely I would sympathize 
with you. Were I near you, we would sit in some 
retired corner, exempt from intrusion, and talk of the 
virtues of one, and the innocence of seven, till we 
should forget our grief, and only think of them as 
objects to direct our attention to that happiness which 
we hope they have attained. Indeed there are no 
means so effectual to wean us from repining at what 
we think a loss. When you have been brought to 
this degree of resignation, take some interesting book 
that will confirm you in your good intention ; and 
when again some endearing recollection intrudes, and 
unmans or unchristianizes you, (if I may use the 
word,) yield quietly to sorrow once more, till your 
mind gradually recovers its proper tone. 

" I know my presumption in offering you any ad- 
vice, yet I hope you will forgive me, as it proceeds un- 
studied from my heart, without thought or ceremony. 
Life is at best precarious ; my health has been greatly 
so since my return from England. Ejitres nous, I 
have strong reason to believe that the hurricanes 
of which I was compelled to partake in London, 
laid the foundation of my illness, and I must confess 
that the agitation I underwent previously to my 
departure, gave me great uneasiness, as it pre- 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. xli 

vented my taking leave of one whom now I can 
never behold on this side of the grave. How de- 
lighted should we have been, had it pleased the 
Almighty to realize the agreeable surprise the dear 
woman imagined ! I often lamented forgetting the 
French language, but that of the heart is under- 
stood. 

" Mr. Beytagh condoles sincerely with you, and 
begs your acceptance of his most friendly wishes, 
for the re-establishment of your tranquillity. He 
thinks I have already said too much on so melancholy 
a subject, and therefore postpones writing until you 
can bear to talk of something less interesting. May 
that period soon arrive ! 

" There is nothing that I could so strenuously re- 
commend to you as the invention of some new em- 
ployment. Is there anything you have not studied ? 
If so apply to it. Write something. Become politi- 
cian, metaphysician, or any other ician, where you 
have not already trodden and explored. Tell me, 
do you think we shall know one another in the next 
world ? I give it you, as a theme or thesis, or what- 
ever it should be called, — but, you must employ 
your pen upon it, and be assured you will be run- 
ning no risk in doing me that honour, as I hope my 
principles are fixed, and that I am neither bigot nor 
enthusiast. 

"Believe me, my dear sir, your very sincere friend 
and humble servant, 

" Isabella Beytagh." 



Xlll MEMOIll OF THE 



The genealogical works which my father laid be- 
fore the public, and which were characterized by a 
reviewer as " exhibiting a body of evidence not more 
remarkable for its perspicuity than for the acuteness 
with which it was drawn up," have already been 
noticed. The subject was now wound up by a peti- 
tion to the king. This petition extended over 
several closely written folio pages. After briefly 
recapitulating the evidence in support of Lord Gal- 
loway's claim, it enumerates the several gallant 
achievements by which different branches of the 
family had from time to time distinguished them- 
selves. It enlarges particularly upon the hardships 
and privations to which they had submitted, and 
upon the honour which had been gathered around 
the British name, on occasions when some of the 
Garlieses had valiantly fought and bled. Among 
other historical facts, there is an interesting narrative 
of the siege of Portmahon, in 1756. In defending 
this fortress, Major-General Stewart, a younger son 
of James, Earl of Galloway, was pre-eminent. His 
skill and personal bravery contributed not a little to 
the noble stand which the garrison maintained. 
There is also an account of the spirited attack made 
by the British troops on Fort Saratoga, in North 
America, where the undaunted courage of our coun- 
trymen was so conspicuous. Here some of the most 
illustrious commanders shed the last drop of their 
blood in adding new lustre to their country's glory ; 
among them was the Honourable George Stewart, a 
younger brother of the petitioner. 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. xliii 

The petitioner further states that the attachment 
evinced for so many generations by the Stewarts of 
Garlies towards the house of Lennox, led to the sa- 
crifice of many lives, and to the diminution of the 
family inheritance ; but that, as an excitement to 
perseverance in submitting to their privations, they 
were constantly reminded of the necessity of support- 
ing the dignity of the house of Lennox, in whose in- 
terest the members of the family of Garlies were so 
intimately concerned, as partakers of its fame, and as 
reversionary heirs of its honours, which they were 
taught to consider as a reward of all their toils, and 
a remuneration for all their losses : That the loyalty 
and public services for which the family had so long 
been remarkable, sprang from their attachment to 
their country, and from their affection for their 
sovereign; and that it was hoped his majesty would 
not deem them unworthy of recompense. The nobie 
petitioner, in conclusion, humbly prayed that, should 
loss of family documents, through unfortunate acci- 
dents, the lapse of years, or the turbulence of the times, 
during the revolution of so many centuries, cause 
an apparent informality in any part of the evidence 
adduced in support of his claim, his majesty would 
be pleased to adopt such measures and give such 
directions as in his wisdom he might deem most 
likely to prove effectual, in causing his petitioner to 
be invested with the honours which he flattered him- 
self would appear, to all parties, to be his hereditary 
right, and in support of which his ancestors had so 



XII V Mi: MO lit OF THE 



profusely bled, and the family estate had been so 
severely burdened. 

In pursuing this important object, my father was 
employed for the space of at least eight years ; and it is 
not too much to say that few genealogical writers have 
laboured with greater diligence, or been more distin- 
guished by a clear and perspicuous arrangement of 
their materials. He has eminently shewn his skill in 
the happy art of simplifying an abstruse subject, and 
of making it intelligible to an ordinary reader. The 
controversy between Lord Galloway and Mr. Stuart 
was complicated and tedious, and many were the 
genealogists who took part in the discussion ; but he 
was generally acknowledged to be by far the most 
accurate of them all. Indeed, it is difficult for any 
but those who have been similarly engaged, to form a 
just idea of his merits. He had but one leading 
purpose in view, but one powerful incentive to a task 
in itself so uninviting and so arduous, and that was 
the gratification of his noble friend and patron. In 
thus testifying his respect, however, for his lordship, 
he thought he would strive as far as he was able to 
interest the public also, by rendering the biographi- 
cal portion of his work both pleasing and instructive. 
Of the characteristic qualities of his intellect, these 
labours present a highly favourable example, and 
they would alone establish his reputation as a candid, 
fair, and skilful controversialist. 

Lord Galloway's claims having been made satis- 
factorily apparent, not only was his lordship created 



REV. ELTEZER WILLIAMS. xlv 

an English peer, but the pedigree, which had become 
intricate and imperfect, was now completely restored. 
In the Gazette is this memorable entry : "31. May, 
1796, John, Earl of Galloway, K. T. created peer of 
England, with the title of Baron Stewart of Garlies, 
in the stewartry of Kirkcudbright." Some of his lord- 
ship's letters of this period shew that he felt how 
deeply he was indebted to his advocate. 

About the commencement of the year 1796, my 
father went back to London, and resumed his duties, 
both as lecturer at All-Hallows, and as secretary and 
librarian to Mr. Blakeney. This gentleman, in con- 
sequence of his increasing infirmities, seldom went 
from home, but he saw much company at his own 
table. The arrangements of his establishment were 
on a scale of almost princely magnificence. Here 
my father was introduced to many distinguished 
families. Here, in particular, he became acquainted 
with the late Sir George Leonard Staunton, Bart, 
and his lady, whose kind and generous friendship he 
valued among his choicest treasures. It was here 
too that he first saw his second wife, Jane Amelia 
Nugent, daughter of St. George Armstrong, Esq. of 
Annaduff, near Drumsna, in the county of Leitrim, a 
near relation and intimate friend of Mr. Blakeney ? s. 
Captain Armstrong served for many years in the 
royal marines, and at this period held a commission 
in the Westmoreland militia. My father's second 
marriage was solemnized at Chichester, towards the 
close of the year 1796. He continued to reside in 



xlvi MEMOIR OK THE 

London until the death of his friend Mr. Blakeney, 
an event which occurred in 1799. He then removed 
to Chad well, in Essex, of which parish he became the 
curate. In addition, he held the appointment of 
chaplain to the garrison of Tilbury Fort. 

It has been erroneously stated that he withdrew 
into this comparative seclusion for the purpose of 
retrenchment, as if his mode of living* in the metro- 
polis had been so disproportioned to his means, as to 
be culpably extravagant. His habits, however, were 
not such as to justify the imputation. It is true 
that his income was inconsiderable, and it is true 
that on Mr. Blakeney 's death it suffered some dimi- 
nution ; but it is also true that, possessing a serious 
and literary turn of mind, he was led to this step, in 
order that he might devote more of his time to the 
sacred duties of his profession, and to those tranquil 
enjoyments of domestic life which were so con- 
genial with his mild and affectionate spirit. To the 
last he was in the habit of recurring to that in- 
teresting period which he found to be unspeakably 
happy. 

No sooner was he fixed in his new abode than he 
set himself earnestly to work : he collected some of 
the odes which he had amused himself with com- 
posing while at sea, and having added a few others 
to them, and appended such explanatory notes as he 
thought to be necessary, he sent them to the press. 
In 1801 they appeared before the public, in a quarto 
volume, under the title of " Nautical Odes, or 



REV. ELTEZER WILLIAMS. xlvii 

Poetical Sketches, designed to commemorate the 
Achievements of the British Navy," and dedicated to 
his friend and patron, Earl Galloway. On the 
whole, they met with a favourable reception, al- 
though his finances were not much improved by the 
publication. 

In the " Antijacobin Review" for the year 1801,* 
are the following remarks : 

" The purpose of this work is so laudable, and so 
congenial with the affections of Englishmen, that 
every man who feels for the honour of his country 
must be prepared to read it with patriotic en- 
thusiasm. The work is dedicated to Lord Viscount 
Garlies, but the author does not subscribe his name. 
The first tribute to naval heroism, in this collection 
of Nautical Odes, is addressed to the memory of 
Lord Hawke ; and the author proceeds to celebrate 
every subsequent achievement of British valour, on 
its natural element, down to the present times. If 
the author does not reach the sublimest heights 
of poetry, he, at times, soars to no ordinary pitch ; 
and, considering the similarity in the actions which 
he records, he has shewn a considerable share of 
ingenuity in varying his images. He has also dis- 
played a power of irony and sarcasm in addressing 
the French, or in speaking what he supposes ought 
to be their sentiments, which gives an agreeable 
variety to his work. He seems indeed to be tho- 

* June 1801, p. 267. 



xlviii MEMOIR OF Till. 

roughly the seaman s friend t and the few tales which 
follow his " Odes" are calculated to promote nautical 
morality and prudence. The whole concludes with 
a monody on the death of Admiral Barrington, 
which is honourable to the poet as well as to the 
departed hero ; we shall extract one of our author's 
odes as a specimen of his manner." 

The " Odes" are also thus noticed in the Nautical 
Magazine:* " This work contains thirty-one Odes, 
and other pieces of poetry, all on nautical subjects, 
which, with very few exceptions, relate entirely to 
events that have taken place during the present war. 
Their style, though perhaps not rising into the 
highest sublimity or excellence, is far above medio- 
crity. To the poetical pieces just mentioned, are 
added six tales, in verse, very properly intended to 
inculcate the practice of virtue among the seamen, 
and reform their manners. To sum up our opinion 
in a few words, we highly commend the intentions 
and attempt of the author, fully persuaded that, al- 
though he may not rival Homer in genius, he may 
at least equal Gay in mildness and benevolence." 

In the " Flowers of Literature"! 1S the following 
paragraph in reference to the " Odes :" " Every 
Englishman, who feels for the honour of his country, 
will read these poetical effusions with patriotic en- 
thusiasm." 

* Vol. v. p. 331. f Vol. i. p. 454. 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. xl 



IX 



My father was also a frequent writer in the " Cam- 
brian Register," the " Gentleman's Magazine," and 
other similar publications of the day. For the most 
part he made use of a fictitious signature, and on 
this account it is difficult precisely to ascertain his 
contributions. 

It may with justice be said that no man was more 
jealous of his Christian principles. When attacks 
were made upon what he believed to be the only 
hope and stay of the soul, he was among the fore- 
most to buckle on his armour, and go forth to the 
great conflict. In some of the ephemeral literature 
of the times, he exposed the ignorant flippancy 
of Paine's " Age of Reason." He also took a part 
in the memorable controversy with Dr. Priestley, as 
to the doctrines of the early Christian church ; and 
he subsequently afforded important assistance to Dr. 
Burgess, in refuting the dangerous heresies of Bel- 
sham. Besides this, he translated several of the 
Psalms of David, and not a few epigrams from the 
Greek Anthology, into English verse. His principal 
work, however, appears to have been a poem, which, 
there can be little doubt, he intended for the public 
eye. It consisted of Hints to Females in High Life, 
and is characterized by great energy of style, refine- 
ment of taste, and originality of thought. The 
manuscript is in a very imperfect state, but a few 
extracts will be given in the Appendix. 

There was another poetical work which he was 
preparing to publish, with various notes and histori- 



1 MEMOIR OF THE 

cal illustrations, and oi' which his design was to re- 
present himself as merely the editor, although, from 
the few fragments found among his papers, it is cer- 
tain that he was himself the author. The subject 
seems to be the Dying Confession of a Revolutionary 
Culprit. In glancing at the political aspect of his 
own times, and lamenting his former delinquencies, 
the hero severely censures the irrational and perni- 
cious conduct of those who, in their blind zeal for 
innovation, were gradually undermining the bul- 
warks of the constitution, and hastening on the ruin 
of their country. 

Two or three specimens of the text, and of the 
notes, may gratify the reader. If in these produc- 
tions the author does not rise to the noblest heights 
of poetical beauty ; if they do not abound with the 
most splendid offerings of the muses, — they yet dis- 
play the graces of a remarkably easy versification, and 
have much of that rare felicity of expression which 
marks a refined taste. There is indeed but little 
doubt, that if my father had been blessed with a 
longer continuance of tranquil retirement, and, in- 
stead of being occupied in the wearisome and mono- 
tonous labours of a school, had enjoyed better oppor- 
tunities of sedulously cultivating his powers, he would, 
even at the present day, have possessed, as a writer, 
no inconsiderable share of the public favour. 

In the autumn of the year 1804, he took his family 
to see his friends in South Wales. 

On their way a circumstance occurred, which, at 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. H 

the time was the occasion of considerable anxiety. 
Soon after their arrival at the inn at Bristol, the 
youngest little girl, about three years of age, by some 
means or other, escaped the vigilance of the servant. 
She was soon missed, and immediate search was 
made in every direction. No trace of her could be 
obtained, and it was greatly feared she had been 
kidnapped. After some hours, however, during 
which the feelings of the parents were such as may 
be better imagined than described, she was acci- 
dentally discovered in the coach-house of a neigh- 
bouring inn, lying asleep, with her tiny arm locked 
in the wheel of a carriage. It was supposed, as far 
as could be gathered from her unaffected tale, that 
she had been wandering about, till seeing a coach- 
house, she went in to look for " Papas tarriage" 
and that, finding no person there to answer her 
inquiries, she became frightened, and cried herself 
to sleep. 

My father, in consequence of a serious accident 
which befell his mother, who was then about eighty 
years of age, was detained from his clerical duties 
longer than he had expected ; and, on his return, not 
meeting with so favourable a reception from his 
rector as he had anticipated, a want of confidence 
arose between them, that caused a short interruption 
of friendship. They were happily reconciled by the 
kind interference of their common friend, the Rev. 
Sir Adam Gordon, Bart., rector of West Tilbury. 
This circumstance, however, together with a desire 



Hi MEMOIR OF THE 

to labour in the vineyard of his native country, 
tended in some degree to exercise an influence on 
his subsequent career. For, shortly afterwards, 
the vicarage of Lampeter, Cardiganshire, became 
vacant, and was offered to him by Dr. Burgess, at 
that time bishop of St. David's. He accepted of the 
living, and was inducted to it on the 14th of July, 
1805, and finally took his family to Lampeter in the 
autumn of the same year. 

My father had not long been settled in his new 
abode before he discovered that the benefice did not 
answer his expectations. At that time it did not 
yield £200 per annum. He therefore opened a 
grammar school, which the bishop licensed, with a 
view to preparing young men for the established 
church. As the duties of an instructor of the rising 
generation are, perhaps, scarcely inferior in import- 
ance to the sacred functions of a Christian minister, 
so none should be better qualified for such an office 
than those to whom is confided the precious message 
of reconcilation and peace. Yet it may, at the least, 
be a question how far the one is compatible with 
the other. 

Lampeter was, at that period, a poor and inconsi- 
derable place. Uneducated preachers from among 
the lowest classes of society, were starting up ; and 
nothing could be more desirable than to check their 
rapid growth, and, if possible, to train up plants in 
a more cultivated soil. Such a nursery, therefore, 
as my father's, in that immediate neighbourhood, 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. liil 

was hailed by the friends of the established church 
with great delight. It not only yielded present good, 
but it has been the spring of blessings which will, 
perhaps, continue to flow to the natives of the princi- 
pality, for ages and ages that are yet to come. 
These were golden opportunities to the inhabitants of 
the town, and of the surrounding district, and they 
were not slow in availing themselves of them ; but he 
soon found that the employment neither brought him 
competence, nor added materially to the happiness 
of his life. At the same time, the proofs which he 
received of grateful attachment and devotedness on 
the part of his pupils, chased away many a cloud 
that would otherwise have darkened his path. The 
glebe-house was in too dilapidated a state for him to 
occupy it as a place of residence. The bishop, there- 
fore, allowed him to convert it into a school-room, 
and to denominate it a " Licensed Grammar School." 
From this seminary, young men, in conformity with 
stated regulations, were admitted, at the usual age, 
into holy orders, and it may with truth be asserted, 
that no school in the principality attained a higher 
reputation, and that there has been no period in the 
history of the Welsh church in which have appeared 
so many examples of ministerial devotedness and 
manly eloquence. The effects are even now ex- 
perienced in the fulness of the blessings of the gospel. 
A few years after the establishment of this semi- 
nary, the Rev. John Williams, the late venerable 
master of Ystrad Meirig Grammar School, and father 



Hv MEMOIR OF THE 

of the present eminent rector of Edinburgh High 
School, visited the " rival chieftain," and, on ap- 
proaching the building, made some ironical remarks 
on what he was pleased to term the " magnificence 
of its architecture ;" " Come, come," said my father, 
" don't be too hard, if the exterior be not according 
to your taste, I hope that you will find less to con- 
demn in the furniture." 

A religious and literary association, connected 
with the St. David's Auxiliary Society for Promot- 
ing Christian Knowledge, had been formed for the 
purpose of diffusing religious knowledge among the 
poor, and of promoting charity and union among the 
clergy and all classes of Christians within the diocese. 
The particular objects of the society were : 

1. To distribute Bibles and Common-Prayer 
Books, at reduced prices ; small religious tracts, in 
Welsh and English, gratis among the poor, especially 
such tracts as are recommended by the London 
" Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge." 

2. To establish libraries for the use of the clergy. 

3. To facilitate the means of education to young 
men intended for the ministry of the Church of Eng- 
land, who are educated in the diocese. 

4. To encourage the establishing of English schools 
for the benefit of the poor. 

5. To promote the institution of Sunday schools. 
In order to give a stimulus to the clergy in their 

theological pursuits, and to promote among that body 
the study of English and Welsh composition, at the 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. 



lv 



suggestion of the bishop of the diocese, a premium 
was annually offered, by the Committee of that 
Society, for the best essay on some subject connected 
with the Christian ministry. That for the year 
1807, was the " Pelagian Heresy, and the refutation 
of it at Llanddewi Brefi, by St. David." It appears 
from a letter which my father addressed to his bro- 
ther, that he had some intention of becoming a 
candidate. 

" The Sermon," says he, of " Dewi at Llanddewi 
Brefi, against the Pelagian Heresy, is the subject 
proposed for the prize dissertation next Easter. I 
have a mind to try for it. There is an account of 
Dewi's sermon and miracles at Llanddewi Brefi, in 
" Eurgrawn Cymraeg," which you have; and I will 
thank you to furnish me with a transcript of it as 
soon as possible. There is a reference to it in " Gi- 
raldus Cambrensis." I have read something like- 
wise relative to it in Bede, Nennius, Stillingfleet, 
"Wall's Infant Baptism," and " Mosheim's Eccle- 
siastical History." Any extracts that you can send 
me from the two former works, if you have them in 
your library, will be of service to me. Dubricius, 
whom St. David succeeded in the episcopal seat, 
died in the year 522,* and the memorable sermon 
was preached about the year 519. Am I correct ?" 

From some cause or other my father gave up his 

* Dubricius, weighed down by age and its attendant infir- 
mities, resigned his sacred charge a considerable time before his 
death. This will account for the apparent anachronism above. 



lvi 



MEMOIR OF THE 



intention. The prize was awarded by the Committee 
to the Rev. John Williams, of Ystrad Meirig. Such 
contests, when managed in a truly Christian spirit, 
have proved of considerable benefit, as well to the 
clergy themselves as to their flocks ; and if a fund 
were formed for a similar purpose in each diocese of 
the principality, not limiting the candidates to com- 
positions in the English language, there is every 
reason to believe that the beneficial effects would 
soon be apparent. 

About this period, Mr. (now Sir Samuel Rush) 
Meyrick was busily engaged in collecting materials 
for a History of Cardiganshire. He was glad to 
avail himself of my father's assistance, for he knew 
how familiar he was with the topography of the 
country, and its antiquities ; nor was he slow in ac- 
knowledging his obligations. In a letter, which my 
father addressed to his brother, he says : — " I will do 
what 1 can with respect to the Welsh Magazine, but 
I cannot promise you much assistance. And the 
people in this neighbourhood, for the most part, do 
not seem to be very bookish. Mr. Meyrick has been 
applying to me for aid in his history. I fear I can- 
not serve him to the extent he wishes, for my leisure 
time, at present, is much circumscribed. I have, 
besides attending to my school, and the duties of my 
parish, two Welsh sermons to compose every week, 
and much miscellaneous reading and writing to 
occupy almost every moment that I can command." 

The accounts of Lampeter and of Caio x which he 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. IvH 

contributed to Carlisle's "Topographical Dictionary 
of Wales," a work remarkable for the minuteness as 
well as for the accuracy of its information, afford a 
specimen of the manner in which he treated such 
subjects, and cannot be otherwise than interesting to 
the reader. 

"Llanbedr, or Llanbedr Pont Stephen, is situate 
in the beautiful vale of Teifi ; and about half a mile 
distant from the town, is a bridge over the Teifi, 
which is supposed to have been erected by King 
Stephen, in one of his excursions into Wales : he is 
also thought to have encamped on a meadow near 
the river, still called the king's meadow ; and in an 
adjoining field a subterraneous chamber was dis- 
covered, called Seler y Brenhin, i. e., the king's 
cellar : several curious stone steps led down to this 
royal apartment, but a neighbouring farmer lately 
demolished it for the sake of the stones with which 
it was constructed. This appears to have been a 
much larger place formerly than at present ; and the 
number of its inhabitants gave them some conse- 
quence, as frequent mention is made, in the Welsh 
Chronicle, of the men of St. Peter having ac- 
complished some action or other ; and this is further 
confirmed by a piece of ground to the south-west of 
the town, still called Mynwent Twmas, i. e. St. 
Thomas's church-yard, in which pieces of leaden 
coffins are frequently dug up : the tradition is, that 
the ruins of this church were standing about two 
hundred years ago, and the street leading to it, is 



lviii MEMOIR OF THE 

called St. Thomas 's-street. A small portion of this 
parish is considered as appertaining to the hundred 
of Troed yr Aur, though at a considerable distance 
from that hundred ; this portion is called the town- 
ship of Tref y Goed. This parish contains 4000 
acres of land; of which nearly 1500 acres are culti- 
vated. Two-thirds of the tithes go to the precentor 
of St. David's : the vicar has the other third, and 
receives hay tithe from one parcel of the parish, in 
addition to which he has a salary of £ 1 5 per annum 
from the see of St. David's. There is a house in the 
town, called the Priory, in the garden of which are 
some low ruined walls, and an aged yew-tree ; and 
tradition says, that a priory formerly stood near this 
spot, but it is not mentioned in Tanner's " Notitia 
Monastica," nor in any records now extant. There 
are several mineral springs in the neighbourhood, 
but they are now seldom resorted to. Here are two 
tumuli, or castles, one of which is not far from the 
church, and the other is near the road leading to 
Aber Ystwith ; the fosses round the latter are almost 
complete. On the common are some remains of a 
Roman road ; and near Olwen is a curious artificial 
hill, on which was a Roman camp, and where part 
of a Roman military mill was lately discovered. On 
the summit of the hill, to the eastward of this camp, 
are some Druidical remains ; on one side whereof is 
a large Roman encampment, and on the other side is 
a still larger British or Flemish encampment of an 
oval form. Castell Rhegett is also in this parish ; 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. lix 

and nearly opposite to it, on the other side of the 
Teifi, is the Gaer, an entrenched British post. The 
Britons seem here to have disputed every inch of 
ground with their invaders. The church is very 
ancient, and has the remains of a rood-loft within it, 
and some monuments of the Millfield family. Mill- 
field was a very ancient seat of the Lloyds, baro- 
nets. The Vicar of Llandovery's favourite son having 
perished in an intrigue there, the father uttered the 
well known curse, — 

" The curse of God on Maes y Felin Hall, 
And every stone in its detested wall." 

The country people will have it that the family never 
throve since ; that the place was soon reduced to a 
heap of ruins ; and when the estate fell into the hands 
of the Lloyds of Peterwell, that they soon felt the 
effects of the same malediction, and every family that 
subsequently came into the possession of these ob- 
noxious lands ; in proof whereof, they shew the 
modern built house of Peterwell, now a mass of rub- 
bish. In a charming situation, on the side of a 
sloping hill to the westward of the church, stood 
anciently the mansion of the lords of Llan Bedr, 
called Arglwyddi Llan Bedr. Tradition represents 
them as men of great opulence, and points out the 
remains of a causeway that led by a stone bridge over 
the river Croy w Ddwr, in a direct line from the man- 
sion-house to the west door of the church. This estate 
fell subsequently into the hands of Lord Marchmont's 
family ; and some elderly persons, lately living, re- 



lx MEMOIR OF THE 

membered Lord Marchmont in possession of part of 
it. Archbishop Baldwin, and Giraldus de Barri, 
are stated to have successfully promoted the service 
of the cross here, by their united exhortations." 

" Cynwyl Caio, in the county of Carmarthen, is 
beautifully situate near the rivers Cothi and Twrch. 
In the heroic elegies of Llywarch Hen, a celebrated 
poet who flourished from about the year 520 to 630, 
Caio is called Caio Gaer, which seems to imply 
that it was then considered as a city, or, at least, as 
a well fortified place ; and from the magnitude of the 
church, it is conjectured that some monastic or eccle- 
siastical institution was established here in the middle 
centuries. At the mines within this parish, which 
were doubtless worked by the Romans, is a well of 
remarkably cold water, issuing from a rock, and con- 
sidered formerly as infallibly efficacious in rheumatic 
complaints. Near Briw Nant, the seat of the Rev. 
Mr. Lloyd, and on the estate of J. Johnes, Esq., of 
Dolau Cothi, are two sulphureous springs, which are 
supposed to be superior to the wells in the counties of 
Brecknock and Radnor ; but they are scarcely known, 
and remain in a very neglected state. Mr. Rasp, the 
mineralogist, from an experiment made upon one of 
them, found that the water was impregnated with a 
greater quantity of sulphur than any spring that he 
had visited. Near Pump Saint is a chalybeate spring of 
great celebrity in the neighbourhood for the many ex- 
traordinary cures which it is reported to have effected. 
At Maes Llan Wrthwl, in this parish, a great battle 



REV. ELIEZEll WILLIAMS. lxi 

was fought between the Romans and the ancient 
Britons; and a Roman general was interred there. 
Under the threshold of the door, at the seat of J. 
Bo wen, Esq., are the neglected fragments of a stone, 
with an inscription which is given at length in 
Camden. There are several tumuli in the neigh- 
bourhood; particularly near a bridge called Pont 
Rhyd Remus, i. e. the bridge on Remus's Ford. 
Roman bricks are often dug up in the adjacent fields. 
Tradition says, that a large town, called y Dref Goch 
yn, Neheubarth, i. e. the red town in South Wales, 
was built here by the Roman soldiery, and that the 
houses were principally constructed of brick. Near 
the summit of a hill where, at present, there is no 
water, are the ruins of a mill, called Melin Milwyr, 
i. e. the soldiers' mill. The traces of an aqueduct 
are observed near the spot. The river was raised 
with immense labour, and brought over the highest 
hills for many miles, and poured over the excavated 
mountain, where they dug for ore, in order to wash 
away the dross in the manner described by Pliny. It 
is hardly credible that a stream of the magnitude of 
the Cothi could be thus raised, and carried so prodi- 
gious a distance over steep precipices ; but the 
vestiges of the work are still visible, and excite every 
intelligent person's admiration. Considerable quan- 
tities of gold are supposed to have been formerly 
obtained in these mines. A beautiful golden tor- 
ques, now in the possession of J. Johnes, Esq., was 
ploughed up by his servants in the common field ; 



lxii MEMOIR OF THE 

the extremity of which was adorned with a curious 
figure of a serpent, of the same pure metal. Another 
torques adorned with the figure of a dolphin of the 
same material, was dug up not long ago near the 
same spot ; and Roman ornaments, though never 
searched for, are frequently discovered in the vicinity 
of these ancient mines. In digging for gravel to repair 
the roads, a common coarse pebble was lately found 
here, with an amethyst in the middle of its upper 
surface, which, on examination, proved to be a very 
valuable antique of Diana ; it is now in the posses- 
sion of J. Johnes, Esq. On the road to Llanddewi 
Brefi, at a place called Hen Llan in this parish, there 
is a Roman causeway, called by the inhabitants 
Sarn Helen : the usual appellation in the princi- 
pality for Roman roads, in honour of Helena, the 
mother of the emperor Constantine the Great, whom 
they represent as a native of Wales." 

My father's school was now increasing rapidly, 
and the number of applications for the admission of 
pupils was so great, that he felt himself under the 
necessity of removing into a more commodious house 
which had been recently built, and in which he con- 
tinued to reside for the rest of his life. 

The religious divisions which existed in the prin- 
cipality, at the period of his arrival at Lampeter, 
occasioned considerable regret to the admirers of our 
venerable hierarchy, and to the lovers of decency and 
order, and to none more so than himself. He had 
discovered to his sorrow that the established church 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. lxiii 

had lost much of her popularity, and that a violent 
spirit of opposition was gaining ground, especially 
among that denomination of Christians called the 
Calvinistic Methodists, who constitute, by far, the 
largest sect in Wales, but of whom, however, it is 
only justice to acknowledge that, at the present 
day, they are actuated by a far more friendly feeling. 
They were considered, it is well known, as part of 
the established church for many years after their 
first dissent from it ;* and none except episcopally 
ordained ministers performed the sacred functions 
of the priestly office throughout, and administered 
the sacraments. But, like every other democratical 
body, not being satisfied with the power they 
already possessed, they coveted more, until their 
desire of having lay-preachers, ordained after the 
manner of English dissenters, was gratified : hence 
their defection from the mother church. The limits 
of this memoir will not allow of a minute inquiry 
into the subject; but it may be briefly remarked 
that, had our spiritual rulers given more encourage- 
ment to pious ministers, and had they pursued more 
conciliatory measures towards those men, whose 
only crime (if we may except, perhaps, a few minor 
irregularities in the forms of ecclesiastical discipline, 
which might easily have been controlled), was a dead- 
ness to the world and a devotedness to their sacred 
functions, we should not have now to mourn over the 

* See " Life of Charles, by the Rev. E. Morgan," p. 357. 



IxiV MEMOIR OF THE 

prevalence of schism, or the emptiness of many of 
our venerable churches. 

This new order of things is thus alluded to, by 
my father, in a letter to his brother, dated Decem- 
ber 24, 1810:— 

" A great change is likely to take place among the 
Methodists in this part of the country. It is said 
that it was decided at the last association held in 
Swansea, that Ebenezer Morris, and some of the 
most ambitious among the lay-preachers, should be 
ordained in the dissenting way, and qualified to ad- 
minister the sacraments. This has given great 
offence to the old Methodists most attached to the 
church, who, upon this bold new measure, have 
threatened to leave the connection, and return to the 
church. Hughes has left them already, and has 
been with the bishop, who has decided on receiving 
him back into the true fold, and giving him a 
curacy, provided he can get his testimonials signed, 
which half a dozen of the neighbouring clergy and 
myself very readily did sign; and, be assured, 
we are not a little pleased to encourage the wander- 
ing sons of the church to return once more to the 
bosom of their ecclesiastical mother. It is expected 
that Williams of Lledrod, will follow the example so 
properly set him by his neighbour and fellow- 
wanderer, Hughes. Nathaniel Rowlands is also 
very desirous of retracing his steps, if a small living, 
or an eligible curacy in this neighbourhood, could be 
procured for him. In short, if the bishops were to 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. lxV 

avail themselves properly of this schism among the 
sectaries, I believe that thousands, both in North and 
South Wales, might be restored from among the 
common people who have been led astray ; and most 
of the stray clergy would gladly ' ground arms,' and 
change sides again, if they were well received and 
leniently treated. For I hear that the new self- 
created ministers begin to assume considerable 
authority, and treat their brethren of the clergy with 
great tyranny. It is much to be regretted that our 
bishops are strangers to the country, and know so 
little of its temper and disposition ; otherwise schisms 
of this nature might be prevented, or easily repressed 
when they occur." 

My father deeply lamented these things. He saw 
what, in that body, formed the ground of attachment 
on the part of the hearers, at the same time that he 
was not insensible to the deficiencies of himself and 
his brother clergymen. He perceived that with 
ignorance and outrageous rant in the former, there 
were often mixed up a rude intellectual strength, and 
perhaps a freshness of thought ; that from the pe- 
riodical publications of the day the preachers were 
gleaning a species of knowledge, by the aid of which 
they gave a peculiar character of interest to their 
addresses : and that, in fact, they were thoroughly 
acquainted with the style of language, the tone of 
sentiment, and the kind of argument by which, in 
such congregations as are furnished by most districts 
of the principality, Christian truths were best conveyed 

f 



JXV1 MEMOIR OI THE 

to the heart. He was aware that the mode of preach- 
ing adopted by the latter, especially by those of 
them who had been educated in England, was too 
calm and unimpassioned ; that their discourses were 
too logical and scholastic ; that they aimed at guiding 
the reason when they ought to be appealing to the 
affections, as if they had forgotten that the sun warms 
while it enlightens ; that the majority of the clergy 
conceived that they were bound to confine themselves 
to mere formalities, while they were sinking into an 
apathy ; and that there was a want of that community 
of feeling which ought ever to subsist between a 
pastor and his people — a people too, in the present 
case, whose minds were now sufficiently informed to 
distinguish between the bread of life and the husks 
of vain philosophy. 

My father, thus witnessing in sorrow the state 
of the church, resolved to employ all the energies 
that he could command in changing the current of 
affairs. The bishop, being totally unacquainted, at 
this period at least, with the language of the country, 
and consequently with the character of the inhabi- 
tants, did not view things under the same aspect. 
Here was a mighty obstacle ; and as his lordship 
was obliged to draw his conclusions from the state- 
ments of others, rather than from his own personal 
observation, as is the case with many bishops simi- 
larly situated, it was no trifling privilege to have so 
near his person an individual who possessed a discri- 
minating judgment, together with a thorough know- 



REV. ELIEZER. WILLIAMS. lxvii 

ledge of the peculiarities and requirements of the 
people, and a manly disposition which prompted him 
fearlessly to say what he thought. Some changes were 
proposed in the mode of ecclesiastical discipline ; 
but the bishop apprehended, and not without reason, 
that it was forming a dangerous precedent ; that by 
once breaking down the barriers which encircled the 
church, an entrance would be afforded to the experi- 
ments of rash and heedless projectors, and on this 
ground he deferred giving his assent. My father, on 
the other hand, though as jealous of innovations as 
his lordship, argued, that as a matter of expediency, 
something must be done to save the existence of the 
church ; that desperate remedies should be applied to 
desperate cases ; that the projects contemplated might 
be carried into effect without any compromise of 
principle. At last many of the proposed plans were 
adopted ; and, as the result, never have the features 
of a diocese been more essentially improved. 

But it was not so much an organic change as 
the relaxation, the softening of a system which 
Dr. Burgess had laid down on his appointment to 
the see. It may reasonably be believed that some 
of the visitation sermons which my father preached 
before the bishop and clergy, and which were after- 
wards published, contributed in no small degree to 
effect this alteration in his lordship's sentiments. 

Among the newly adopted plans, a monthly meet- 
ing of the clergy, held in rotation in the parishes 
of the different sub-deaneries, may be regarded as 



Ixviii MEMOIR OF THE 

by no means the least interesting or the least im- 
portant. Though, unquestionably, such interviews 
among persons engaged in the same labour of love, 
could not fail to be an abundant source of pleasure, 
social enjoyment was not their primary object. 
Wherever associations of this nature have been esta- 
blished upon the same principle, they have proved 
eminently useful. One excellent result has been a 
more intimate union among the clergy. In the 
minds of the people too, a deeper concern has been 
awakened for the temporal and spiritual welfare of 
the church. The junior clergy also have had oppor- 
tunities of listening to the discourses of their seniors. 
These advantages in many dioceses are not fre- 
quently enjoyed ; but the writer does not despair of 
seeing the day when such associations will be held 
throughout the principality, and when the bishops 
themselves may regard it as by no means inconsistent 
with their exalted station to encourage them even 
with their presence. Who will hesitate to acknow- 
ledge that this would be in strict accordance with 
the theory and doctrines of the church, and greatly 
profitable to her children ? 

Another of the proposed alterations affected the 
services of the church. The Welsh Common Prayer 
Book had long been thought, by many distinguished 
Welsh scholars, to require revision. It appeared to 
them to want that beauty and simplicity of style by 
which the original is so strikingly characterized. 
My father, with all his dislike of precipitate and 



REV. ELIEZER, WILLIAMS. lxi 



IX 



useless changes, concurred in the general opinion, 
and strongly recommended it. He was an ardent 
admirer of the Liturgy. He was of opinion that in 
simple grandeur and beauty, it is not only un- 
equalled, but unapproached by any other human 
composition in the world ; at the same time he could 
not fail to perceive that much of its excellence was 
lost to his countrymen, by the imperfect nature of 
the form under which it was presented to them in 
the Welsh translation.* It was this alone that 
incited him to venture upon such a proposition. 
A new edition with corrections and amendments had 
been published, under the superintendence of the 
Welsh clergy, and with the sanction of the bishops 
of Hereford, St. Asaph, Bangor, and St. David's, in 
the year 1710. Under similar auspices, two editions, 
considered until then to be perfect, had been issued 
in the years 1664 and 1668. He therefore argued 
that there was no want of a precedent, and that a 
new edition was now required by the times ; espe- 
cially as the object was neither to amplify nor to 
abridge, but to strike out certain terms and expres- 
sions that had become obsolete, and to substitute 

* The clergy of the principality have much reason to complain 
of the Forms of Prayer on particular occasions that have, of late 
years, been forwarded to them. In many instances the officiating 
ministers have been under the necessity of themselves translating 
them from the English, in order to render them intelligible to 
their several flocks. Surely it is but fitting that those who 
have the direction of these matters should appoint a person pro- 
perly qualified for the office of translator. 



Ixx 



MEMOIR OF THE 



others more in accordance with the progressive in- 
telligence and improving taste of the people. Some 
impediments were needlessly thrown in the way, and 
the design fell to the ground. Happily, the subject 
has since been revived by some active friends of the 
church, who thoroughly understand the language, 
and have succeeded in gaining the consent of the 
bishops of the principality to another revision. The 
undertaking is doubtless a work of difficulty. May 
the talented individuals, who have engaged in it, be 
directed by Him with whom is the fountain of light 
and wisdom, who is the giver of all good, and without 
whom Paul may plant and Apollos may water, but 
there can be no increase ! 

Although my father could not but observe the 
disadvantages under which the establishment la- 
boured—as, alas ! it still continues to labour, — dis- 
advantages highly injurious to its interests, such as 
the wide extent of parishes, the dilapidated state of 
sacred buildings, and the poverty of the benefices — 
yet he hoped that it might be in his power to assist 
in checking the prevalent spirit of defection, and in 
contributing to the efficiency of the ecclesiastical 
machinery, by a strict vigilance over the education 
of those young persons who were entrusted to his 
care. His plan was, after having for the first five 
years led candidates for holy orders through several 
of the classics, and through a course of general lite- 
rature, to direct them to the study of theology. The 
principal books which he put into their hands were 



REV. ELTEZER WILLIAMS. 1 



XXI 



the Scriptures of both the Old and the New Tes- 
tament, in the original languages ; the Christian 
Fathers, Grotius de Veritate Religionis Christianas, 
Burnet de Fide et Officiis Christianorum, Clericus 
de Eligenda Sententia, Jewell's Apologia, Nicholl's 
Defensio Eccl. AngL, Hooker's Ecclesiastical Polity, 
Pearson on the Creed, Mosheim's Ecclesiastical 
History, and such other works as their diocesan re- 
commended. This furnished them with occupation 
for the last two or three years of the period during 
which they had the benefit of his tuition. It was 
his especial solicitude not only that they should ac- 
quire a habit of expressing their ideas upon paper 
with facility, but that they should devote a portion of 
their time to the study of rhetoric, and to a graceful 
and effective elocution in their native tongue. With 
this view, he exercised them in composition, and in 
the art of committing what they wrote to memory. 
Most of the young candidates thus attained a fluency 
of utterance, an accurate mode of expression, and an 
unhesitating confidence of manner, that in the end 
amply compensated them for all the labour to which 
they had been obliged to submit. Not a few of them 
have risen to distinguished eminence as preachers, 
and have been remarkable for their readiness in ad- 
ministering exhortation and comfort, as particular 
circumstances might require. In short, they have 
drawn together large congregations, and their admir- 
ing hearers have continued through life to be consis- 
tent and exemplary members of the church. 



Ixxii MEMOIR OF THE 

May the writer hope to be excused, if, without in- 
tending to draw invidious comparisons, he expresses 
his regret that a longer period of probation is not as- 
signed to those candidates for holy orders who are 
brought up at the universities ; as the difference be- 
tween the occupation of a collegian and that of a 
pastor is so great, the transition from the one to the 
other is generally so sudden, and the evil conse- 
quences of this, at least in the northern parts of the 
principality, are so evident, that some additional 
provisions are loudly called for.* It would certainly 
be an advantage, if, after taking their degrees at the 
universities, candidates for the ministry were to pass 
through a second course of theological instruction, 
specifically calculated to prepare them for their 
sacred office. To this principle physicians and bar- 
risters are obliged to conform ; and will it be denied 
that, if the importance of these professions demand it, 
the functions of the clergy are at least of equal mo- 
ment ? An institution might be established some- 
what similar to that at Lampeter, or to that at St. 
Bees, but on a smaller scale, and on the plan pro- 
posed by the Rev. Charles Girdlestone, f where the 
students might devote themselves solely to the study 
of theology, and of the Welsh language, and to 
what is equally important, a knowledge of the prac- 
tical parts of their future duty, in order that their 

* Some important remarks on this subject may be found in 
'* Bridges' Christian Ministry," p. 90. 
-f- Late of Sedgley ; now of Alderlcy. 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. 1 



XXlll 



minds may be impressed, as they ought to be, with 
a sense of the awful responsibilities attached to 
the office of a "worker together with God." This 
plan might be pursued under the guidance of the 
masters of the institution, or under the superintend- 
ence of some of the most zealous and devout among 
the neighbouring clergy, who in their parochial mi- 
nistrations would gladly avail themselves now and 
then of the assistance of these young men. Perhaps 
if such a scheme were generally adopted throughout 
England, as well as in Wales, there would be less 
need of the " Pastoral Aid Society," to which ob- 
jections, many of them frivolous indeed, have lately 
been raised by sticklers for austere rules and rigid 
technicalities. It may be here remarked that the 
excellent Dr. Middleton's plan was analogous to 
this. Finding that the toil of years for the diiTusion 
of Christianity in India had been all but ineffectual, 
he established at Calcutta the institution appropri- 
ately called Bishop's College, for the purpose of re- 
ceiving aboriginal students, and of qualifying them for 
propagating the gospel in the dialects of the country. 
My father was also zealous in promoting schools 
for the lower classes of society, especially when they 
were founded upon Christian principles, and con- 
ducted in conformity with the doctrines and disci- 
pline of the established church. Upon this subject 
he wrote an essay, the greater part of which has 
been destroyed or lost. He seems strenuously to 
have recommended the formation of parochial schools 



Ixxiv MEMOIR OF THE 

similar to those which had been productive of such 
admirable effects in Scotland. The funds for their 
support, he conceived, might without much difficulty 
be raised from the landowners, the lay impropri- 
ators, and the clergy. In his estimation, to with- 
hold the benefits of instruction from the humble 
tenants of the vale, is a miserable requital of the 
obligations which we owe to the illustrious reformers 
of the protestant church, and indeed a most fearful 
neglect of duty. 

Among the various important institutions of those 
days, calculated to raise the moral and intellectual 
condition of the country, there were none of which 
my father thought more highly than the Circu- 
lating Welsh Charity Schools.* They were ori- 
ginally projected by the Rev. Griffith Jones, rector 
of Llanddowror, and were afterwards successfully 
conducted by him and by that eminently pious and 
munificent lady, Madam Bevan of Laugharne. 

The system, in my father's judgment, was signally 
adapted to the taste and to the wants of the Welsh 
people. In these schools the English language was 
not exclusively taught, and instruction was given 
with an especial view to the discipline of the mind and 

* Into these truly Christian schools were admitted adults, even 
individuals of sixty or seventy years of age, who had they not 
been instructed there in the principles of the gospel, would in all 
probability have perished in their ignorance. At Mr. Jones's 
death, there were three thousand of these schools, and there were 
in them no fewer than one hundred and fifty-six thousand two 
hundred and thirty-seven scholars. 



REV. EL1EZER WILLIAMS. lxXV 

to the formation of the character. Such of the scholars 
as were natives of the principality learned to read the 
sacred volume, and religious books of high reputation, 
in the Welsh language. Where there was a mixture 
of Welsh and English scholars, masters competent to 
teach both languages were employed. The children 
twice a day received instruction in the principles of 
the Christian religion, the church catechism being 
used as a text book, aided by scriptural expositions, 
compiled and published for the purpose. While the 
masters and the visiting clergy inculcated the con- 
scientious discharge of every duty, they did not for- 
get to begin and conclude the business of each day 
with praise and prayer. 

As to one point in the management of these schools, 
the bishop and my father were again unfortunately 
at issue. His lordship felt anxious, as was certainly 
very natural, that the schools should be organized 
on a plan that would tend to the ultimate extinction 
of a language of which he himself was ignorant; 
while my father, being, as we have already seen, 
thoroughly acquainted with the circumstances and 
habits of the flock under his care, knew by experi- 
ence that the people were not able to receive religi- 
ous instruction in any other tongue, and that to 
persist in such a scheme would drive away the church 
members that yet remained. It was the happiness, 
however, of Dr. Burgess to be, as has been already 
remarked, surrounded by men who well understood 
what measures would be most conducive to the spiri- 



Ixxvi MEMOIR OF THE 

tual welfare of their countrymen, and being always 
open to conviction, he saw reason, at length, to alter 
his opinion on this subject as well as on many others 
connected with the duties of his diocese. In order 
to give more effect to his administrations, he began 
in earnest to learn the language of the country. 
But although by this step he obtained a clearer in- 
sight into the character, and became better ac- 
quainted with the wishes of the people, his progress 
was not so rapid as it unquestionably would have 
been if he had devoted himself to it at an earlier period 
of his life. At the same time he saw the expediency 
of relying less, not only on his own judgment, but 
also on that of the English portion of his clergy, who 
had hitherto principally guided him. This wise 
and judicious course was fraught with blessings to 
the principality, as the increased and the still in- 
creasing prosperity of the church in South Wales 
sufficiently testifies. That he deeply felt how im- 
portant it was for him to understand the language of 
the diocese which he superintended is well known. 
An amusing anecdote may shew with what assiduity 
he pursued his new employment. One day when 
my father had occasion to call at the palace, he was 
ushered into the library, where he found the bishop 
seated at a table, deeply engaged in turning over the 
leaves of some ponderous volume. His lordship re- 
ceived him with his usual courtesy, and said he was 
especially happy to see him at that precise moment, 
as he had been much puzzled by a word which a 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. lxxvii 

child, then playing in the room, had used.* He had 
searched his dictionaries for it in vain. He said the 
little girl was balancing herself on a chair, and while 
in that position she exclaimed " twmpo, twmpo" twice 
or three times. My father observed, that it was 
evident that the child was in danger of tumbling 
down, and was anxious that his lordship should 
assist her ; and that the word was cwympo, which 
signifies falling, or I am falling. Thus was the dif- 
ficulty explained. 

A splendid catalogue might be made of men who, 
having been born in cottages, and nurtured through 
their infant years in the bosom of obscurity, have 
afterwards singularly enlightened and blessed the 
world, and who have been indebted to the kind hand 
of charity for rescuing them from their low estate, 
and bringing out their talents to the day. More 
there might have been — 

" But knowledge to their eyes her ample page, 
Rich with the spoils of time, did ne'er unroll : 
Chill penury repress'd their noble rage, 
And froze the genial current of the soul." 

After all, such cases must be comparatively rare ; 
for only a few individuals are destined to arrive at 
great eminence. Every day's observation, however, 
will tell us that such unpretending institutions as my 
father was desirous of establishing, have sent forth 
multitudes whose conduct, in their respective spheres, 

* She had been adopted by Dr. Burgess. 



lxxviii MEMOIR OF THE 

has been marked by integrity and usefulness. These 
schools indeed may be considered as among the most 
effectual securities that can be devised for the peace 
and well being of the community. Those habits 
which are too often the disgrace and ruin of the 
lower classes, result in no small degree from the ig- 
norance and idleness in which they have spent their 
earliest years, and from their exposure, as they 
advance in life, to the polluting example of associ- 
ates who have been equally neglected with them- 
selves. In proportion as the number of these is 
lessened, as the young are withdrawn from this idle- 
ness, and accustomed to a diligent application of 
their mental powers in the acquisition of elementary 
knowledge — in the same ratio will temptation lose its 
influence, and the motives to sobriety and godliness 
be strengthened and multiplied. 

If any one can for a moment imagine that educa- 
tion has but little influence on the virtue and hap- 
piness of man, let him read the annals of human 
depravity, mark the proceedings in our courts of 
criminal justice, or listen to the transgressor's melan- 
choly tale, as he falls a victim, in the midst of his 
career, to the laws which he has insulted and set at 
nought. It will be found that of those unhappy in- 
dividuals who have been guilty of the most atrocious 
offences, few have enjoyed the blessings of instruc- 
tion, even at the humblest of our schools, and the 
great majority have grown up in total ignorance of 
all which it is most important for a rational and 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. lxxix 

dying creature to understand. The fact has been 
ascertained from actual and repeated inquiry. It is 
knowledge that must be the grand instrument of re- 
formation ; and till religion, the religion of the gospel, 
goes hand in hand in this noblest of causes, it can 
never be accomplished. "To enlarge the mind," 
says an eminent writer, " merely to impart informa- 
tion, and to awaken the dormant consciousness of 
power, without, at the same time, furnishing a guide 
and director to that knowledge and that power, in 
the knowledge of the principles of true religion, 
would tend to ruin those entrusted to our care." 
We should, under no circumstances, countenance a 
plan of education that is to exclude religious instruc- 
tion, and that is to be independent of the ministers of 
our church, who are the natural and proper guardians 
of the education of the great mass of the people. 
It is with no inconsiderable gratification that the 
friends of Christianity witness those fresh motives to 
exertion which are now infused into the " National 
Society," by the aristocracy and clergy of the 
country. They have reason to rejoice that a board 
of management, for the extension and improvement 
of national education, is formed in most of the 
English dioceses. May these labours of mercy be 
blessed with that guidance from above which is so 
essential to success ! 

Yet it cannot escape the notice of a careful ob- 
server, that even where schools are ostensibly con- 
ducted on scriptural principles, instruction is not 



lxXX MEMOIR OF THE 

always so given as most effectually to discipline the 
mind and form the character. The understanding 
is cultivated, while the heart is left untouched. 
Knowledge is imparted, but the scholar is not taught 
how he may turn it to practical account. This evil 
is nowhere more perceptible than in the principality; 
and there can be little doubt that the employment of 
a language which the children do not understand, or 
at least in which they do not commonly converse, 
and which they do not use in their religious exercises, 
operates powerfully as a disadvantage to the cause 
of a sound moral education, and, in consequence to 
the prosperity of the Welsh church. It is too well 
known to those who are in circumstances to witness 
the fact, and it is with deep concern that the writer 
is constrained to acknowledge it, that four-fifths of 
the children who have been brought up in our 
national schools in Wales, however excellent the in- 
stitution, and however well the system may work 
elsewhere, desert their foster mother, and when they 
have attained the age of maturity, unite themselves 
to other religious communities. To what can we attri- 
bute this but to the exclusive system which is carried 
on in seminaries where the scholars are instructed in 
the mechanical part of the rudiments of learning, 
and in the theory of religion, while the practical and 
more essential portion, which is to influence their 
conduct through life, is left to those who can enter 
into their feelings, and are able to converse with 
them intelligibly in their native tongue. Hence it is 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. JxXXl 

that they are prevailed upon to enrol themselves 
under other religious teachers, who, by oral ad- 
dresses, and by unceasing attention to the spiritual 
wants of their hearers, seldom fail to inspire them 
with a glowing and deep attachment to the principles 
of dissent. 

It is fervently hoped that this subject will receive 
the attention which it deserves from those who have 
power to supply a remedy. The writer is aware 
that by these suggestions he may be incurring the 
displeasure of some of his brother clergymen, for 
whose learning and moral rectitude he entertains the 
highest respect ; but they are the sentiments of his 
heart, and he entertains them in common with many 
of his countrymen, whose object, like his own, is not 
to encourage " local and provincial jealousies and 
dislikes," but to advance the real good of their 
country, and to secure the well-being and permanency 
of its church. 

While my father was thus busily engaged, it 
pleased the Great Disposer of events to visit him 
with a trial that bowed his very spirit to the earth. 
His beloved wife, his heart, and his heart's joy, was 
snatched from him a few days after she had given 
birth to a son. Her death presented indeed a solemn 
scene; she had a foreboding of the awful event, and as 
it drew near, she spoke of it to those around her in a 
tone of resignation, and even of cheerfulness. On the 
morning of the 25th December 1811, having consigned 
her " dear babes" with earnest solicitude to the care 



lxxxil MEMOIR OF THE 

of the most confidential of her domestics, she calmly 
breathed out her soul into the hands of Him who, 
as on that day, came down from heaven to purchase 
for her, and for all who, like her, shall believe and 
obey, a never ending* life of blessedness and glory. 

To my father it was, in truth, a heavy, a paraly- 
sing blow ; he felt it with a poignancy of grief, of 
which none but kindred sorrowers are able to con- 
ceive. As soon as his mind was sufficiently com- 
posed, his children, some of whom, in the first hurry 
of that melancholy catastrophe, had been taken 
away by a kind neighbour, were assembled together 
in his room, where, by a tender appeal, he endea- 
voured to impress upon them, as far as they could ap- 
prehend it, a sense of the irreparable loss which they 
had sustained ; of the undoubted wisdom and righte- 
ousness of God's inscrutable decrees ; and of the 
necessity of pouring out their prayers, that the cala- 
mity might be sanctified to their everlasting good. 
They all then knelt down, and it was a moving sight 
to behold the heart-stricken anguished father, and 
his weeping children, thus with uplifted hands, 
" acknowledging the rod, and Him who appointed 
it." Time is scarcely less a comforter than an in- 
structor ; but never will the awful solemnity of that 
hour be forgotten. 

" Thus many a sad to-morrow came and went, 
Till, all my stock of infant sorrow spent, 
I learn'd at last submission to my lot ; 
But though I less deplored thee, ne'er forgot." 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. Ixxxiii 

In the name of mother there is something that is not 
of this world, something that may claim alliance with 
the skies. He who can think on her who gave him 
birth, he who can call to mind the fond and watch- 
ful eye, the tender look, the sweet benignant smile, 
the constant flow of love, and remember them with- 
out a veneration beyond all common feeling, is fit 
only for the deepest shades of darkness, and the 
dreary solitude of the desert. " Shew me a man, 
says an elegant writer,* " though his brow be fur- 
rowed, and his hair grey, who has forgotten his 
mother, and I shall suspect that his memory is im- 
paired, or that a hard heart is beating in his bosom." 
This excellent woman instructed her children, while 
her husband attended to the duties of his school, 
and whenever his presence was required at the sick 
bed of any of his parishioners, she was not backward 
in administering to their temporal wants. In order, 
the more effectually to perform her task of love, she 
studied the Welsh language, an example well worthy 
of being followed by all who are similarly circum- 
stanced, and had she lived she would have found the 
acquisition a great convenience to herself, as well as 
an eminent advantage to others. But her usefulness 
was not confined to domestic and parochial affairs ; 
she even gave her assistance in conducting the busi- 
ness of the school. 

Wherever a turn for drawing was discovered 

* Washington Irving. 



Ixxxiv MEMOIll OF THE 

amongst the pupils, for she possessed considerable 
talent herself as an artist, she seized the first oppor- 
tunity of endeavouring to foster it, by her advice, by 
her valuable suggestions, and by every encourage- 
ment that she could give. Being also a proficient 
in music, she laboured diligently to promote in the 
young people a love of that delightful science. A 
certain number of the day-scholars were invited in 
rotation to the house once a week, for the purpose of 
exercising their vocal powers, while she accompanied 
them on the pianoforte. It is perhaps to this cir- 
cumstance that the attainments which many of them 
subsequently made in psalmody* are to be ascribed. 
In short she was never idle ; in every thing that re- 
lated to the intellectual and moral welfare of those 
around her, she felt a generous concern. And when 
we advert to the scenes in which she passed her 
earliest years ; when we consider how different were 
the circles in which she had been accustomed to 
move ; how attractively the fascinations of the world 
had spread themselves before her, — we cannot but 
admire the steadiness with which she undertook the 
discharge of duties so noiseless and unobtrusive ; or 
rather we cannot fail to muse in holy wonder over the 
power of that grace which could enable her to with- 
draw her heart from earthly shadows, and to fix them 
upon the realities of an eternal world. Her children 

* These young men conducted the psalmody in Lampeter 
church, and several of them afterwards received premiums awarded 
for proficiency in psalmody, by the Diocesan Society. 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. lxXXV 

were taken to church at a very early age, and it was 
her care by the solemnity of her countenance and the 
seasonableness of her gentle reproofs to awe them 
into a becoming seriousness of behaviour. The only 
instance which occurs to the writer of her gravity 
having been disturbed in such a place, was when one 
of her little boys perched himself upon a seat of the 
family pew, and lustily chaunted, to the no small 
dismay of the congregation, the well known lines of 
Master Newbury : 

" Little Tommy Tucker sung for his supper, 
How shall he cut it without e'er a knife ? 

What shall he have ? White bread and butter. 
How shall he marry without e'er a wife ?" 

In public and in private, in her daily conversation 
and in the unpretending virtues of an exemplary life, 
she adorned her Christian profession ; while she was 
one of the kindest of wives, and the most indulgent, 
the most judicious, and the best of mothers. At the 
time when it pleased God to take her to her heavenly 
rest the writer was young and thoughtless ; such, how- 
ever, were the tenderness and affection with which she 
blessed his childhood, that, before he loses the im- 
pression which they made upon his heart, that heart 
must have ceased to beat. Here, then, let him drop 
a tear ; and if he have said too much he hopes to be 
forgiven, since he has been speaking of his first, his 
gentlest earthly friend, whom to remember is to re- 
vive the recollection of ten thousand nameless kind- 



lxxxvi MEMOIR OV THE 

nesses, never to be repaid, and never, never to be 
forgotten. 

Her removal from the scene which she adorned and 
gladdened was thus noticed in the obituaries of that 
year : " On the 25th inst. at Lampeter, Cardigan- 
shire, Jane Nugent Amelia, daughter of St. George 
Armstrong, Esq. of Annaduff, in the county of Leitrim, 
and wife of the Rev. Eliezer Williams, M.A., vicar 
of Lampeter, &c. A lady whose attention to the 
sick, beneficence to the poor, and kindness and affa- 
bility to all, rendered her universally respected and 
beloved during her life, and regretted and sincerely 
lamented at her death ; while her amiable disposition, 
her sincere piety, and her apparently confident hope 
of divine mercy, gave every reason to believe, that 
her dissolution, which was the cause of grief and 
sorrow to others, was an occasion of joy and triumph 
to herself." 

It has been already observed that one of the objects 
of the Diocesan Society for Promoting Christian 
Knowledge and Church Union, in the diocese of St. 
David's, was to provide the means of education for 
young men who were designed for the ministry of 
the church of England. Although much classical and 
theological learning might be acquired in the princi- 
pal schools, the bishop thought that it would be 
beneficial to the church in Wales, if candidates for 
holy orders — who had not within their reach the ad- 
vantages of a university education, and who were 
often obliged to undertake the humblest offices of 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. lxxxvii 

tuition before they had completed their own prepa- 
ratory course — could be enabled to employ them- 
selves in studies more comprehensive, as well as in a 
manner more suitable to the dignity of the clerical 
profession. 

The loss of St. Mary's College at St. David's, and 
of the Colleges at Abergwilly and Llanddewi Brefi, 
was highly detrimental to the established church in 
that diocese. The distance of the diocese from the 
English universities, and the poverty of most of its 
benefices, placed an education at either of those seats 
of learning out of the reach of the greater number of 
candidates for the Christian ministry. This loss was 
inadequately compensated for by the Collegiate In- 
stitution at Brecon. It was therefore suggested that 
there ought to be, at the least, one establishment for 
the appropriate education of candidates for the Chris- 
tian ministry. In order to accomplish this a fund 
was formed, towards which each incumbent contri- 
buted a tenth of one year's income from his benefice. 
As a beginning the bishop himself put down the sum 
of £120, a proportionate part of the revenues of his 
see ; and ultimately his Majesty George IV., the 
English Universities, the lords of the manor, and 
various other benevolent persons, contributed with 
great liberality to the undertaking. Thus was the 
project conceived of founding the noble institution 
which has since been designated St. David's College ; 
an institution, let it be added, which is conferring 
incalculable benefit, not only upon that portion of 



lxXXVlii MEMOIR OF THE 

the principality, but upon the nation at large. In 
the first instance it was proposed at a meeting of the 
rural deans in the summer of 1806, merely to build 
lodging rooms at Ystradmeurig for the students. It 
appears that local difficulties presented themselves, 
which rendered the situation not so convenient as 
might have been wished. These difficulties induced 
the society to direct their thoughts to Llanddewi 
Brefi. 

The parish of Llanddewi Brefi is part of a manor 
belonging to the bishop of St. David's ; and Dr. 
Burgess was willing to grant to the Society ground 
enough for the requisite buildings, garden, &c. 
Llanddewi Brefi also recommended itself by its 
seclusion ; by its vicinity to some of the bishop's best 
patronage, which might serve as a reward to the 
fidelity and zeal of the professors ; by its spacious 
church, which was large enough to accommodate a 
numerous society ; by its convenience for stone, 
fuel, &c. ; and for its healthy situation. 

My father's school, however, soon rose to great 
eminence : and this circumstance was mainly in- 
strumental in leading the bishop and his coadjutors 
to fix upon Lampeter as more desirable ; and accord- 
ingly in that previously neglected town was raised, 
from designs by Mr. Cockerell, one of the most 
handsome buildings to be found in Britain. In the 
year 1823 the foundation stone was laid by the 
venerable bishop of St. David's, an epoch in the 
history of Wales to which my father had often with 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. lxxxix 

pleasure looked forward, but which he was never 
destined to see. In a letter to his brother, dated 
December 14, 1808, he says, " Our projected college 
is still in ' statu quo,' though considerable sums of 
money have been collected for it." It was about the 
same period that my father was occupied in writing 
an essay on the choice of masters for this institution ; 
but whether it ever appeared before the public, or 
was even finished, is now difficult to discover. He 
begins with shewing the importance of such insti- 
tutions to the cause of piety and learning, and more 
especially to the interests of the Welsh church, 
when professors are judiciously and carefully se- 
lected. Experience has shewn that where the repu- 
tation of such teachers, as scholars and as Christians, 
has been high, they have formed a university in a 
desert, while presidents of an opposite character have 
created a desert in a university. Nothing tends more 
to ensure success to a literary establishment than the 
choice of competent masters. As no success or glory 
could be expected from an army, how distinguished 
soever the soldiers might be for individual courage, 
unless it were disciplined by able and experienced 
officers ; so a literary institution, however elegant its 
structure, or rich its endowments, can never flourish 
without a wise selection of teachers. A correct and 
critical acquaintance with the language of the 
country would be an indispensable qualification for 
so important an office in such an institution; and 
there would be this additional advantage in selecting 



XC MEMOIR OF THE 

professors from among the inhabitants of Wales, that 
it would be easy to remunerate them for their ser- 
vices, by bestowing upon them preferments in the 
neighbourhood, which they might hold together with 
their professorships. My father was fully persuaded 
that if the intended college at Llanddewi Brefi were 
organized as it ought to be, it would prove the sal- 
vation of the Welsh church, and be instrumental in 
recalling the sheep that were dispersed abroad into 
Christ's true fold. 

In allusion to the period of which we are now 
speaking, Mrs. Hannah More says : " The excellent 
bishop of St. David's is perhaps doing more for the 
intellectual and spiritual good of his fellow creatures 
than almost any of his contemporaries. He has un- 
dertaken the Herculean task of raising the tone and 
morals, learning and piety of a large Welsh diocese, 
to which he gives all his time, and a large portion of 
his income." 

On another occasion, this truly eminent writer ob- 
serves : " St. David's College will be an era in the 
history of Wales ; and I hope it will raise the tone 
both of literature and of piety in their clergy." 

This is a well merited encomium, for no bishop 
ever contributed more to the prosperity of a see than 
Dr. Burgess. The licensed grammar schools, if we 
except two or three of them, were not celebrated 
either for the erudition of the superintendents, or for 
the proficiency of the scholars ; nor was the character 
of the clergy, generally speaking, such as to secure 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. XC1 

to the church, in which they ministered, a very ex- 
alted reputation. It is true there were some among 
them whose names will be cherished with veneration 
and love to the remotest time. But the English 
bishops had, for the most part, appointed to livings 
strangers who were ignorant of the language of the 
country, or who had scarcely made themselves mas- 
ters even of the art of reading it ; who satisfied them- 
selves with visiting their incumbencies once or twice 
a year, for the purpose of receiving their tithes ; and 
who thought their hard-working curates amply recom- 
pensed with an annual salary of £30 or £40. Pre- 
ferments were bestowed upon men of the world, 
while zealous and faithful ambassadors of the cross, 
the only individuals who kept the established church 
from entire extinction, were looked upon with a sus- 
picious eye, branded with the name of Methodists, 
and altogether neglected, if they were happy enough 
to escape persecution. A signal change, however, 
soon took place after the appointment of Dr. Burgess. 
The character of the grammar schools was raised ; 
premiums, from benefactions to the fund for clerical 
education, were awarded both to the clergy and to 
the scholars : to the former for dissertations on given 
subjects ; to the latter for attainments in the classics, 
theology, psalmody, Hebrew caligraphy, and elocu- 
tion. Clerical meetings were established, at which 
appropriate sermons were preached every month in 
each archdeaconry, for the purpose of promoting 
Christian knowledge and church union. In short, so 



XC11 MEMOIR OF THE 

successful were the exertions of the excellent bishop, 
and of those who co-operated with him, that, in the 
space of a few years, the church became as flourish- 
ing in South Wales as in any part of Great Britain. 
Amidst these his daily occupations my father's 
sympathetic feelings were again powerfully exercised 
by the death of his mother-in-law Mrs. Armstrong. 
The melancholy event took place in Dublin, whither 
she had gone only a few weeks before from Wales. 
The following paragraph appeared in the obituary 
of an Irish paper : " Died on the 17th of September, 
1813, in Dorset-street, Dublin, Frances Charlotte, 
the Lady of St. George Armstrong, Esq. of Annaduff, 
in the county of Leitrim, and third daughter of James 
Nugent, Esq. of Carlanstown, in the county of West- 
meath. She was descended from the earls of West- 
meath, and was first-cousin to the late Marchioness 
of Buckingham. * Mrs. Armstrong was in her youth 
celebrated for her beauty, her elegance, and her ac- 
complishments ; and through the whole of life for her 
charity, her piety, her virtuous and exemplary con- 
duct, and in particular, for her sincere attachment to 
the established church ; while during her last pro- 
tracted illness, she displayed Christian resignation 
and a patient subm ssion to the Divine will." 

* Mary Elizabeth Grenville Nugent Temple, only daughter 
and heiress of Robert Nugent, who was son of Michael Nugent, 
of Carlanstown, Esq., and was created Viscount Clare and Baron 
Nugent in 1766, and Earl Nugent in 1776. She was mother of 
the late, and grandmother of the present, Duke of Buckingham. 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. XC111 

My father wrote an acrostic on her death, which 
was inserted in one of the newspapers of the day. 

About this time a Welsh journal called the * Seren 
Gomer' made its appearance. It was patronized 
by the Independents and the Baptists, and one of 
its leading features was an uncompromising hostility 
to the established church. However fully my father 
was occupied, it was not a little that could have 
prevented him from standing forth to resist these 
attacks. " I send you," says he to his brother (Feb. 
21st, 1814), " by this day's post, a Welsh paper 
called the ' Seren Gomer.' I differ from many of my 
brother clergymen, who are of opinion that the pub- 
lication should in no way be encouraged ; for as we 
cannot prevent its being circulated, and as it is in 
sectarian and democratic hands, I think every friend of 
the establishment ought to watch it with a jealous 
eye, and contribute something occasionally towards 
occupying its columns with useful and edifying 
matter. In the accompanying number you will find 
a contribution of mine on Welsh orthography, which 
I wrote for the purpose of counteracting the present 
absurd rage for innovation in that branch of Welsh 
literature. It is a letter addressed to ' Idris Fechan,' 
and signed E. There is also an ode on the twenty- 
four Welsh measures. The intention is to gain some 
influence with the editors, so that what I may write 
on more important subjects may be received with 
greater attention. I should feel obliged if you could 
prevail upon some judicious, able hand, Dafydd 



XC1V MEMOIR OF THE 

Ddu, for instance, to examine the article critically, 
and let me know its defects, that such compositions 
may be more correct in future, as I have not had 
time, of late, to exercise my pen in Welsh poetry." 

A fortnight after he again writes : " I did not 
send you the Welsh composition for the sake of 
drawing forth a compliment, but in order to ascer- 
tain what might be its faults, as I wish to be accu- 
rate in * Barddoniaeth ;' and there is a nest of sec- 
tarians and republicans in Glamorganshire, and even 
in this vicinity, who make use of such a weapon to 
do mischief. I am anxious to be able to wield this 
instrument as well as they, so as to be capable of 
defending the establishment, the government, and 
myself, when necessary." 

Until this period my father had, for many years, 
suffered his talent as a Welsh poet to lie unem- 
ployed ; and when he resumed his pen, he was so 
fully occupied with more important duties, that he 
could not devote to the muse the attention which 
that species of composition so much requires. Hence 
the occasional marks of haste and carelessness with 
which some of his first effusions in the ' Seren Gomer' 
are justly chargeable, and of which, as appears from 
a letter to his brother, he found that his quick- 
sighted opponents were glad to take advantage. 

" Some hypercritics in the Seren Gomer," he ob- 
serves, " have been anatomizing my translation of 
' Vital Spark,' and have dwelt with considerable ill 
nature on a few slips of my pen. A reply was made 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. XCV 

to the critique, and the lines were sent for insertion 
in a corrected form. But the editors declined ad- 
mitting them. I must, therefore, forward them to 
you, and request you will be good enough to have 
them printed in the ' North Wales Gazette.' In the 
meanwhile, for the purpose of recovering my cha- 
racter, you must endeavour to prevail upon Dafydd 
Ddu to look over the enclosed ode of ' Praise to the 
Supreme Being,' and return it to me as soon as pos- 
sible. Assure him of my warmest thanks ; and with 
my kindest remembrances tell him that I have taken 
the liberty of trying his patience once more, and that 
I hope he will act the part of Aristarchus a little 
longer, until my poetical productions may challenge 
the utmost malice of the Zoili, who have been thus 
so unsparingly venting their spleen against me. You 
know my time for this kind of composition is very 
limited, otherwise I flatter myself that such rude 
carvers would have somewhat less employment for 
the dissecting knife." 
March 7th, 1814. 

The circumstances of this critique are further 
illustrated in a letter addressed by an eminent Welsh 
scholar to the present writer :* — " Your excellent 
father had published some poems in the Mesurau 
Caethion in the i Seren Gomer,' on its first appear- 

* Rev. Daniel Evans, M. A. (Daniel Ddu) Fellow of Jesus 
College, Oxford. 



XCV1 MEMOIR OF THE 

ranee as a newspaper, and they were attacked by 
some of the writers of the day in a very respectful, 
though rather bitter tone. Upon this E. o Lanbedr* 
consulted the best grammars containing the rules of 
Welsh bardism, and by his quick and penetrating 
powers of intellect, acquired a nicety of writing that 
was always conspicuous whenever he took the ne- 
cessary pains. The Welsh canghenedd is governed 
by rules requiring much study and labour, which his 
daily round of occupation prevented him from at all 
times bestowing. It is a fact, that he would in two 
or three nights compose a poem that would take any 
other bard a week or fortnight to complete. But 
when he had time there were few more able writers : 
for example, his elegy on the death of Sir Thomas 
Picton,f which is worthy of him as a scholar, and 
is as beautiful a piece of composition as any in the 
British language. 

" His was a gigantic mind, but it was a thousand 
pities to see it so shackled by the profession of a 
schoolmaster. He was a truly zealous minister, 
always in the habit, at least latterly, of composing 
two sermons each week, and taking much pains with 
them : he was a deeply learned divine, a classical 
and Welsh scholar; a most patient, and therefore 
successful, teacher of youth, manifesting a kindness 
equal to the affection of a parent. I hope you will 

* My father's assumed name. 

t This was afterwards set to music, and was translated by my 
father into English elegiac verse. 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. XCV11 

give all his pupils the credit due to them of being 
most anxious to testify in every manner the high 
regard and veneration they entertain for his me- 
mory." 

It was now that a restless spirit of innovation was 
beginning to be fashionable. Every department in 
law, physic, and divinity, seemed to be infected 
with it. Even the ancient British language partook 
of its influence. Some individuals, whose attach- 
ment to the land of their nativity is unquestionable, 
whatever opinion we may form of their judgment, 
conceived an idea of introducing into the Welsh 
tongue a new system of orthography. They pro- 
posed that the ' genius ' of the language should be 
assumed as the only standard by which to examine 
the different modes of spelling the same word, and 
that that spelling should be adopted which might 
appear to be most consistent with the etymology and 
pronunciation. This they held up as the only plan 
by which uniformity could be attained. Capricious 
and uncouth changes had been perpetrated by a 
Welsh scholar of great eminence, and subsequently 
he and his brother philologists attempted to proceed 
still further. It was this spirit of innovation that 
my father so powerfully combated. In his opi- 
nion such changes were merely fanciful ; he thought 
that they were altogether unnecessary ; that they 
would disfigure the language, and ultimately affect 
the pronunciation of it. The editions of the sa- 
cred volume, published respectively by Bishop Mor- 

h 



XCV111 MEMOIR OF THE 

gan * and Bishop Parry ,f he looked upon as the only 
criterion by which the orthography should be deter- 
mined. ' Idris Fechan,' ' Llywelyn,' ' Hirael Haiarn 
Hir,' and 'Tegid,' were some of those who entered 
the lists in favour of the new system. The subject 
was contested with fierce hostility. My father ap- 
proved himself the stern, uncompromising opponent 
of these revolutionists. He encountered them with 
the intrepidity and skill of a well tried warrior, 
and did not retire from the battle-field until, in the 
judgment of many a disinterested spectator, he had 
shivered the lances of his adversaries into a thousand 
pieces. One of the foremost champions in this affray 
was the Rev. John Jones, M.A. 'Tegid,' Precentor 
of Christ Church, Oxford, who was then a very young 
man. My father, at first, mistaking him for an ex- 
perienced writer of that time, ' dealt blows at a pigmy 
that would have crushed an elephant.' A distin- 
guished bard of the present day, speaking of my 
father's Welsh writings says : " His prose composi- 
tions, and among them his letters in controversy with 
1 Tegid' and others, are written in the same hasty 
manner, currente calamo, although they abound with 
classical allusions, with the purest wit, and with as 
elegant fancies as were ever published to the world. 
They have been read and admired by all who are ca- 

* Bishop of LlandafFin 1595, translated to St. Asaph in 1601. 
He died at St. Asaph, in 1604. 

f Bishop of St. Asaph, succeeding Dr. Morgan in 1604. He 
was assisted in revising the first edition of the "Welsh Bible by Dr. 
John Davies, his chaplain. 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. XC1X 

pable of appreciating their beauties. Master * Tegid ' 
being only twenty, or twenty-one years of age at the 
time, was thought to possess a good share of arrogance 
in coping with him ; and he received the castigation 
which his temerity deserved. He was a mere mouse 
in the cats paw." 

It is but justice, however, to observe, that Mr. Jones 
displayed even then no inconsiderable acquaintance 
with the subject under discussion ; that not a few of 
the alterations which he suggested in the structure 
of the language, have been adopted by several writers 
of great respectability ; and that, hitherto at least, 
neither the pronunciation nor the appearance of the 
language has suffered from the change. 

This controversy has since been revived by Mr. 
Jones and Mr. Bruce Knight ; and, although no par- 
ticularly new feature has been given to the subject, 
it has excited much interest in the public mind. 

In the midst of these discussions and literary 
labours, my father was called to mourn over the 
death of a beloved son, his youngest child, snatched 
from this earthly scene just as his mind was begin- 
ning to develope itself, and to awaken the most pleas- 
ing hopes. My father's feelings will be best de- 
scribed in his own words : — 

" MY DEAR BROTHER, Lampeter, June 19, 1815. 

I received last week a very heavy blow. I had grown 
too fond of little Mark ; his quickness in body and 
mind, and his engaging disposition, had won upon my 
heart to a greater degree than ought, perhaps, to have 



C MEMOIR OF THE 

been permitted. He had been under medical treat- 
ment for the chicken pock, from which it was sup- 
posed he had recovered. On Monday, 29th May, he 
was at school as usual ; and after lessons, in order to 
amuse him, we went to see ' Sham Dick,'* and we had 
the old story told over again. He then walked with 
me over the farm, and chattered away with his usual 
vivacity. But he complained occasionally of the 
heat, and seemed to feel a greater difficulty than 
usual in keeping up with me, although he would not 
acknowledge being fatigued. He more than once 
exclaimed, * O dear ! I am very warm, papa !' I at 
last saw that the poor little fellow looked rather pale, 
and that a cold perspiration was trickling down his 
cheeks. But, in order to divert his attention, I told 
him that it was always the case with fat and lazy 
people like himself. He then laughed, and said, that 

* This alludes to the following anecdote : A favourite old horse, 
called ' Grey Dick,' was, one morning, found apparently dead in 
his stall, whence he was dragged to the stack-yard for the purpose 
of burial, the children looking on in solemn silence and grief. 
In the course of two or three hours, my father with little Mark 
visited the farm yard ; and while my father was occupied with the 
workmen, the child slipped off without being observed. A scream 
was soon heard. My father on running to the place, whence the 
cry seemed to issue, found Dick alive and grazing, and the little 
boy bleeding on the ground. It appeared that Mark ran off to 
take another farewell of the old pet, before he was consigned to 
his last resting place, and finding him alive, he was so transported 
with joy, that he went to pat and caress him. While he was thus 
testifying the pleasure that he felt, he received a kick which 
obliged him to cry out. The name of ' Grey Dick' was after- 
wards changed into that of ' Sham Dick.' 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. CI 

he was not very fat; but that his great coat was too 
heavy for him. ' Indeed, papa,' said he, with em- 
phasis twice or three times, ' I will not wear this 
great coat again.' You know I am not superstiti- 
ous ; but these words proved truly prophetic, for he 
never wore it again. He was the following morning 
seized with an illness which turned out to be the 
scarlatina, and which carried him off in a fortnight. 
He died on Tuesday morning last, to the great 
regret of every one who knew him. He was a 
general favourite at school, and his death seems to 
have soberized the boys in a wonderful manner. He 
had his recollection to the last. He talked with me 
very sensibly, and caressed me in his usual affection- 
ate way, about half an hour before his death. His 
remains were borne to the silent tomb by his brothers 
and schoolfellows, on Saturday last, amidst much 
weeping, and were laid beside his poor mother. 

" I know that it is my duty to be resigned and 
submissive ; but the feelings of the parent will some- 
times rise in opposition to those of the Christian. 

" I hope my sister and little Harry are well. May 
God long preserve them to you, and keep you from 
the troubles that assail me ! 

" I have just heard from David Thomas, by Owen, 
and intend to send an answer, should Owen return 
this way as he promised. I shall feel obliged to 
David Thomas, if he will look over my poem on the 
Crucifixion. I have not been able to pay to it that 
attention which so interesting a subject demands 



Cll MEMOIR OF THE 

Where there are two or three stanzas on the same 
measure, the worst may be omitted, if he should 
judge it expedient, but I leave it to him to decide. 
I have lost my relish for the Muses now. The sur- 
viving children are well, and desire their love to their 
uncle and aunt and cousin, in which I join. 

" Believe me to be ever, my dear brother, yours 
most affectionately, " E. Williams." 

P. S. These are anxious and stirring times. The 
fate of Buonaparte has been decided, I expect, ere this. 
We shall hear something further surely this week. 
How soon will many a tender wife have to lament the 
loss of a veteran husband, and a widowed mother to 
mourn the untimely death of a gallant son, in a fo- 
reign land ! Why then should I repine ? 

has nearly recovered from his last # 

accident, an account of which you have already re- 
ceived, but his countenance is much disfigured. I 
am thankful that it was not attended with more se- 
rious consequences. My equanimity is sorely tried 
by such repeated disasters and afflictions." 

* The following extract explains this allusion : " has 

lately met with a dreadful accident. He joined a squadron of 
his schoolfellows in an expedition for taking a rookery by storm, 
and as the stones, for want of balls, were flying about like hail, a 
large sharp-edged stone struck him between the eyes with such 
force, that it knocked him down, and slit the handle of his face 
as if done with a cutlass. He was brought home in a bleeding 
and almost senseless state, and has been above a fortnight under 
the surgeon's hands. He is constantly getting into scrapes of 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. CU1 

Notwithstanding my father's endeavours to bring 
his own will into a coincidence with that of the Great 
Disposer of events, it was impossible not to perceive 
that this stroke was more keenly felt than he chose 
to acknowledge. The sigh which occasionally es- 
caped from his bosom betrayed his inability to 
subdue his inward emotions. And who can wonder? 
It was a trial of no common severity. The boy pos- 
sessed a thousand good qualities to engage the heart. 
He was richly endowed by nature with her most at- 
tractive gifts ; intelligent, dutiful, and affectionate ; 
while blessed with health, revelling in all the thought- 
less joys of childhood ; and during the whole period 
of his painful illness so meekly submissive as scarcely 
to give utterance to a word of impatience or to the 
faintest murmur. 

It was my father's habit, after school hours, to 
stroll over the farm with his happy children ; and 
whoever might go with him, the youngest was never 
left behind. In order to preclude the possibility of 
being forgotten, the little fellow, before the cus- 
tomary hour of walking, would not unfrequently place 

this kind. It is not long since he had an eye nearly knocked 
out, his ankles sprained, and his teeth broken ; in short, he en- 
counters perils by land and by water. These things cause me a 
good deal of uneasiness. Yet he is an affectionate and well dis- 
posed boy. The wound on his face is almost closed, though it 
looked ghastly at first. But he will always bear about him 
marks of his imprudence. Tell Harry it should be a lesson to 
him to be cautious, and to take more care of himself." Lampeter, 
May 17, 1815. 



CIV MEMOIR OF THE 

his tiny cap in his father's hat. Then he was sure 
of being a party in a romping match, in trundling the 
hoop, in flying the kite, in a game at ball, or in a 
hop-step-and-jump upon the green sward. In these 
rambles, it was not seldom my father's delight to 
direct our attention to the peculiarities of some cu- 
rious plant or flower, to the minute wonders in the 
structure of some harmless insect, to the song of 
some feathered warbler, to the ever-changing beau- 
ties of the sky, or to the majestic splendour of the 
sun going down in a paradise of clouds. And he 
would tell us of the grandeur and the condescension, 
of the glory and the love of that Being who made 
them all. 

Can it excite surprise, then, that he should have 
missed his little attendant in these rural walks, and 
that they should have lost in his eyes much of their 
power to please ? Often, on similar excursions, after 
the youngest had been numbered with the quiet 
dead, would he speak to us of all his winning ways, 

" His pretty playful smiles, 
His tricks, his mimicry, 

And all his little wiles : 
Oh ! these are recollections 

Round parents' hearts that cling ! 
That mingle with the tears 
And smiles of after years, 

With oft awakening." 

Frequently has he been seen, when dismissing his 
pupils, to cast an involuntary look around the school- 
room for him, who had long been the chosen and the 
chief of his earthly delights ; then his countenance 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. CV 

would fall, and the tear would start into his eye. This 
bereavement, indeed, for years and years he deeply 
lamented, and it may be truly said, that ' his life ap- 
peared to be bound up in the life of the lad.' 

It is but natural for the reader to expect, at this 
stage of the Memoir, some account of my father's 
character as a schoolmaster. The duty of a teacher 
is far more important than seems to be generally 
imagined. Of those who engage in the employment, 
some have all the patience, and all the solicitude for 
the welfare of their pupils that could be desired, 
without possessing either extent or accuracy of know- 
ledge ; while others have literary attainments of the 
highest order, but are deficient in almost every other 
requisite. To say that my father wanted none of 
these qualifications is to make no idle boast ; as many 
who have had the best opportunity of judging will 
bear ready witness. His plan was, for the most part, 
similar to that pursued in the greater number of such 
seminaries. His pupils read the classical authors 
that are generally used, and stated times were ap- 
pointed for other studies. It was customary for the 
senior scholars to write Latin and English themes on 
the Monday, and Latin verses on the Friday. On 
Saturday, after their usual lessons, the boys were 
formed into one large class. They were examined 
in the Church Catechism ; and as they went on, com- 
ments and practical remarks were made upon diffe- 
rent passages. When this lecture was concluded, 
it was my father's practice to give out a subject for 
a theme, to suggest a few hints, and sketch a sort 



CV1 MEM OHt OF THE 

of outline for the benefit of those who were suffi- 
ciently advanced to undertake this kind of composi- 
tion. He would then give them some important 
advice — on the necessity of employing their talents 
to the best advantage ; on the most appropriate 
manner of spending the approaching sabbath ; on the 
benefits of knowledge, especially when it is conse- 
crated by piety ; and on the ruinous effects of igno- 
rance and transgression. He would then commend 
his attentive listeners to God, and to the power of 
His grace. 

Those whose privilege it was to be present upon 
such occasions cannot have forgotten with what sim- 
plicity, and yet with what elegance he was accus- 
tomed to address himself to the youthful understand- 
ing — how earnestly, how tenderly, and how persua- 
sively he appealed to all the ingenuous feelings of the 
heart, and what stores of learning and experience he 
had at his command. On many the impression was 
so deep that it can be obliterated only by the hand 
of death. 

In most schools it has been the custom to classify 
the boys according to their abilities, and to the pro- 
gress which they have made. Thus the labour of 
the master is considerably diminished, although not 
seldom at the expense of the diligent and quick 
learner. The same system was pursued by my father ; 
but whenever he perceived that any of his pupils 
were materially retarded by their duller, or their less 
industrious class-fellows, he did not hesitate* to allow 



REV. ELIEZEIl WILLIAMS. CV11 

them to form other classes by themselves. Thus he 
greatly increased his own toil ; but he submitted to 
the inconvenience without a murmur, and would 
sometimes good-humouredly exclaim, " Why, how is 
this, sir, still solus cum solo?" He acceded to these 
encroachments, not so much from a want of firmness, 
as from a suavity of manner which was peculiarly 
his own, and from a desire to accelerate the progress 
of his pupils. But notwithstanding his extreme 
anxiety to bring them on, he took care that they 
should not get into a habit of careless reading, 
and that their advancement in actual learning 
should keep pace with any vain ambitious wish 
that might spring up in their bosoms to outstrip one 
another. A little anecdote illustrative of this, as 
well as of his usual manner, occurs to the writer's 
recollection. A big dull boy, having finished a Latin 
author, asked permission, as he had " gone over" that 
book, to begin another. " Gone over it, indeed. 
Come hither, Mark," said my father, to his youngest 
little boy, at the same time placing the book on the 
floor; "jump over that." When the child had per- 
formed the feat, he added, " There, sir ; he has gone 
over it as much as you have.' , 

After all these labours of the day, he did not at 
night afford himself the rest which nature seemed to 
demand. He generally rose from his bed not later 
than seven or eight o'clock, and commenced his 
studies with unabated vigour, thus allowing his 
jaded faculties no more than four or five hours of 



CV111 MEMOIR OV THE 

refreshment. His first occupation in the morning 
was to read a chapter in the Hebrew Bible, a 
practice which he had adopted from a very early 
period of his life, and which he continued to pursue 
to the last. This, together with his private devo- 
tional exercises, occupied him for about the space of 
an hour, when he joined the breakfast table and en- 
gaged in family prayer. The time between that and 
ten o'clock was allotted to letter writing, or to clerical 
employments. After this he made his appearance 
in the school-room ; the lessons of the younger boys 
having been previously heard by the assistant. Not 
seldom some portion of the morning, as well as of the 
half holidays, was filled up by services rendered to 
persons in distress, by the writing of letters and 
petitions on behalf either of veteran soldiers and 
sailors, or of clergymen's widows and orphans. He 
listened with the deepest sympathy and tenderness 
to their several cases of perplexity and sorrow ; and 
if their embarrassments were not removed, or their 
grievances redressed, the fault was not imputable to 
him. The extraordinary powers of his electrical 
machine were known far and wide, so that through 
the whole neighbourhood, for many miles, the aged 
and infirm flocked to him to seek the aid of his skill 
and kindness ; and to their appeals his ear was never 
closed : 

" He watch'd and wept, he pray'd and felt for all." 
After his patients had retired, it was no uncom- 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. C1X 

raon thing for him to entertain his pupils with a 
lecture on natural philosophy. He would explain 
to them the nature of electricity, the laws of fluids, 
the nature and properties of air, the theory of light 
and colours, the difference between reflected and 
refracted rays, together with the causes of many of 
the phenomena which are calculated to awaken the 
curiosity of an inquiring mind. He would accom- 
pany his remarks with practical experiments that 
made them objects of the most intense interest. 

In the summer of 1812, or 1813, he first intro- 
duced into his school the plan of acting plays. He 
commenced with a representation of Mrs. Hannah 
More's * Sacred Dramas.' These were so much 
approved of, that he followed them up with the 
' Comedies of Terence.' It is not intended to 
discuss in this place the question, how far engaging 
in such exhibitions may be consistent with the 
duties of candidates for the Christian ministry, or 
what may be their effect on the subsequent character 
of those who take a part in them ; but it is a fact in 
this particular case, that the individuals who per- 
sonified David and Goliath, in the earliest of these 
performances, turned out to be very eminent men, 
the one as an orator, and the other as a writer. 

As soon as my father entered school in the morn- 
ing, whatever noise and disturbance there might 
have been in his absence, all was hushed, all was as 
still as death, not a whisper was to be heard even 
among the senior boys : they held him in such awe 



CX MEMOIR OF THE 

and respect, at the same time that he was to them an 
object almost of adoration. He possessed unusual 
authority over their minds, although it cannot be 
said that he was either lax or rigid in his discipline. 
Contrition in an offender had upon his feelings the 
effect of oil upon troubled waters ; but want of sub- 
mission, or persevering obstinacy, was adding fuel to 
fire, and he never remitted the manifestation of his 
displeasure until he had conquered. 

Nothing perhaps contributed more to the en- 
couragement of his pupils, especially when they had 
been some time under his care, than the art which he 
possessed of making them lay aside all timidity in his 
presence, and giving utterance without restraint to 
what they really thought. He was thus enabled to 
form an accurate estimate of their powers of mind, 
at the same time that he secured their confidence 
and friendship. And this familiar communication of 
sentiments extended alike to every subject — to criti- 
cism, to disputed points in history, to national usages, 
and to the political conflicts of the day. Whatever 
his own opinions were, though he never shrunk from 
avowing them, and though he would ably and zea- 
lously plead in their behalf, he would have scorned 
dogmatically to impose them upon his pupils. 
Wherever he discovered uncommon talents, his 
conversation was sure to call them into exercise, and 
his warm applause gave that degree of encourage- 
ment which, with open and candid minds, is one of 
the most powerful incentives to persevering industry. 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. Cxi 

In his domestic intercourse with those who were 
under his roof, he avoided as much as possible, on 
all occasions, every appearance of severity : and the 
ease and affability of his manners contributed, more 
perhaps than even the brilliancy of his intellect, to 
produce that affectionate attachment with which all 
his pupils were inspired. This attachment he had 
pleasure in cultivating, as one of the sweetest rewards 
of his labours, and as the most effectual restraint 
upon young men. He treated all his pupils alike ; 
or, to speak more correctly, the difference which 
might at any time be remarked in his attentions was 
the consequence of more amiable qualities of the heart, 
or of superior talent and application, never of superior 
rank and connexions. Not a few young persons 
whose lot had been cast in obscurity, but whose dis- 
positions were promising, were taken by him into his 
house and educated gratuitously : some of them, in 
the stations which they occupy in the church and in 
the world, are now doing signal honour to themselves 
and to the kind hearted patron of their early days. 
Such are ready to rise up and call him blessed. 
When his pupils left him, his connexion with most 
of them was still continued. He was always de- 
lighted to hear of their success or eminence ; with 
many among them he kept up an epistolary corres- 
pondence, and if they were ever in circumstances of 
perplexity or sorrow, they knew where to find a 
friend and a counsellor. 

During their examination every year for the Easter 



CXll MEMOIR OF THE 

prizes, he was always present ; and if he interfered as 
little as possible, that he was not an uninterested 
party might easily be gathered from the anxiety 
which was so clearly depicted in his countenance. 
Moreover, when any of the competitors had an eye to 
holy orders, he spared no pains in fitting them for the 
important office, and in setting before them the sa- 
credness and responsibility of their duties ; and how 
deeply his feelings were engaged through the whole 
of the examination week can be known only to those 
who were on the spot. He thus speaks of these 
exercises : 

"September 30th, 1816. I have seven pupils 
applying for orders this week, and I feel particularly 
anxious about them. I know not how they will all 
fare; but of some of them I am very confident that 
they will do credit not only to me but to themselves, 
and, what is more, to the sacred office which they are 
to fill. Their classical acquirements are not incon- 
siderable, and as to their knowledge of theology, I 
flatter myself no university would have reason to be 
ashamed of them. Let us hope that their learning 
will prove a blessing to themselves as well as to 
others. ' Utilis lectio, utilis eruditio, sed magis 
unctio necessaria quippe quae docet de omnibus. 1 ' 

When his pupils eventually retired to their cures, 
which in nine cases out of ten his influence and his 
exertions had procured for them, no effort was 
wanting on his part to render them pious and useful 
ministers. In short, whatever profession or calling 



REV. EMKZER WILLIAMS. CXlli 

they embraced, or whenever their preparatory studies 
closed, they were always sure of his benediction and 
his prayers : 

" He gave them good advice, 



Bless'd them, and bade them prosper." 

One instance from among many may be recorded, as 
it is characteristic. A youth had attained a commis- 
sion in the marines, and the happy day, as he thought 
it, had arrived when he was to bid farewell to Greek 
and Latin, and to substitute for them the sash, the 
gorget, and the sword ; when he was to pass from 
the heedless life of a schoolboy, to the novel and 
more romantic career of a soldier. He was a fine 
looking lad of sixteen or seventeen, and was popular 
at school. His departure, therefore, was looked 
upon with no small degree of interest. Having 
given most of his younger companions a hearty 
squeeze of the hand, he came, surrounded by the 
senior boys, to take leave of his master. My father, 
while he grasped his right hand, placed his own left 
hand on the young man's shoulder, and reminded him 
of the real situation in which he stood. He told him 
that he was much mistaken if he imagined that the 
change he was about to make was in all respects for 
the better ; that he was going to leave a place where 
he had long revelled in the society of friends, and in 
the enjoyment of a multitude of blessings, for distant 
and foreign climes, where he must expect to en- 
counter much care and many hardships. He hoped 
he would put in practice the good counsel which he 



CX IV MEMOIR OF THE 

bad so often received ; that in his zeal to serve his 
king and his country he would not be unmindful of 
that gracious Being, " who ruleth in the kingdoms of 
men," nor forget his deep obligations to his earthly 
parents ; that he would on no account omit to take 
with him, whithersoever he might go, his Bible and 
his Prayer Book, since these were weapons that it 
was incumbent on him to use, although they were not 
carnal, but " mighty through God to the pulling 
down of strong holds" — assuring him that, although 
this perishing world was so constituted that there 
were occasions on which man's blood must be shed, 
he would not fight the less bravely for remembering 
the duties of a Christian soldier. " And now," said 

he, " my dear D , farewell, and may God bless 

you! 

The school-room may, indeed, be justly said to have 
been the theatre in which the powers of my father's 
accomplished mind were displayed to the greatest 
advantage : still few persons could surpass him in an 
exquisite relish for the various and refined enjoyments 
of social and literary life. Ever desirous of mental 
improvement, ever incited by that thirst for know- 
ledge which is so natural to a vigorous intellect, he 
combined with his classical and theological studies 
a habit of more extensive and varied reading than 
might have been expected from a person so much 
occupied in the business of a school. This habit is 
mentioned the more particularly, not so much because 
it is a feature that marks the individual, as because 



REV. ELIEZEU WILLIAMS. CXV 

it unquestionably had its share in giving him 
that superiority by which he was distinguished in 
general society. He was very communicative in 
conversation, and the facility with which he drew 
upon his ample stores of knowledge secured to his 
remarks the most respectful attention from persons 
of every class. A gentleman in North Wales speak- 
ing of him says : " T met your father occasionally at 
Coed Helen. He was one of the pleasantest and most 
intelligent men I ever knew. He possessed a great 
share of knowledge both ancient and modern, and his 
conversation abounded with anecdote and wit. He 
seemed at home on every topic that was introduced ; 
and whatever anecdote was narrated by any other 
individual in the room, he was sure to have a corres- 
ponding one, which he told admirably. I conceived 
once an idea of taking him out of his beat ; so I 
commenced talking of the Mahratta war, of Hyder 
Ali and Tippoo Saib, and of the scenes I had wit- 
nessed in India. But he wasa cquaintaed with all 
the transactions, knew even the characters of the 
principal actors, and could particularize the various 
incidents of that war far better than I could ; so I 
held my tongue and became a listener, and never 
did I listen with more profound attention, or with 
greater pleasure." 

In the year 1816, the bishop, in a very handsome 
and flattering manner, offered him the prebend of 
Llanddewi Aberarth, founded in the cathedral church 
of St. David's, and vacant by the death of the Rev, 



CX VI MEMOIR OF THE 

W. H. Barker, my father's old master ; and he was in- 
stalled on the 24th of August in the same year. This 
piece of preferment, however, was less valuable, in a 
pecuniary view, than as a station of honour, for it 
seldom produced more than four or five pounds per 
annum. 

Towards the beginning of the year 1817 my father 
undertook the translation of my grandfather's Anno- 
tations on the Bible. These Annotations were first 
published in the year 1770. Perhaps no work that 
ever issued from the Welsh press had received a 
larger share of public favour, or had produced more 
abundant fruits of a religious life among the inhabi- 
tants of the principality. It had passed through many 
editions. There was scarcely a cottage in which a 
copy was not to be found, and scarcely a family that 
had not benefited by perusing it ; and that at a 
period when a Bible was comparatively a rare trea- 
sure. As the original work had been productive of 
much good to the Welsh community, it was supposed 
by the projectors that an English version would be 
acceptable to the middle and the lower classes of the 
English. It was this that induced my father to ac- 
cede to the proposal, of which he thus speaks : 



" MY DEAR BROTHER, Lampeter, May 20th, 1817. 

H — and H — are now on their way to the north, 
and I have only just time to scribble a few lines by 
them to say we are all well. The die is cast — I have 
now engaged to translate my father's notes. H — 



a 



REV. ELIEZER 'WILLIAMS. CXV11 

called upon the bishop, and he has given not only leave 
to undertake the work, but permission also to dedicate 
it to him. He has moreover promised to subscribe 
to it, and to do all in his power to promote its success. 
I fear H — will take all the profits, should there be 
any. I only wish for enough to make me even with 
the world. 

" But this is speaking in a manner unworthy of a 
subject of so much importance. We ought to look 
beyond all sordid views. Yet it is difficult to see 
unmoved mercenary individuals with mercenary 
minds reap the fruit of our labours. What others do, 
however, is nothing to us : our individual line of duty 
is plain ; and if the translation be attended with half 
the good that blessed the original, I shall think my 
services amply repaid. 

" The summer is approaching, and we are with- 
out any intelligence from you. I request to know 
when you intend being in South Wales, as I am in- 
formed Mr. Bowen is to exchange duties with you, 
and we hope for the pleasure of your company for 
some time. I fear it will be out of my power to visit 
you this year, though I once intended it ; however, 
should I be able to undertake the journey, I should 
be glad to be apprized of your movements, that I 
may not arrive in the north when you are on your 
way to the south. 

" A person, who lately returned from Bala, assured 
me he had seen there a Mr. E — R — of Caernarvon, 
who gave him the strongest reason to believe that the 



CXVlll MEMOIR OF THE 

venerable rector of Llanrug and family were in good 
health and spirits, though from the long silence ob- 
served in that quarter, unfavourable apprehensions 
had prevailed. 

" I beg you will present my kindest regards to him, 
and to his fair lady, when you can seize the tempora 
mollia fandi, and find the parties in good humour ; 
and let them know how much pleasure it would give 
me to hear from them, and to be informed of their 

welfare. has a very fleet pony, and begs you 

will let Harry know, with his love, that he longs to 
match him against Sampson. 

"Young Hughes of Tregib, descended from the 
Gwynnes of Nannau, I recommended to you lately : 
has he called on you ? Yours most affectionately (in 
haste), " E. Williams." 

My father soon commenced the task ; but he did 
not live to finish it. This is much to be regretted, 
as a work of the kind would have been of great use 
in family worship. The comments at the conclusion 
of each chapter are above all praise ; they are con- 
cise and perspicuous, and the practical remarks are 
scriptural, chaste, and energetic. 

In the autumn of 1817, my father, as rural dean 
of the upper deanery of Sub-Ayron, was called upon 
by a deputation of his brother clergymen to draw up 
a petition against the claims of the Roman Catho- 
lics. A public meeting was not convened ; but he pre- 
pared the memorial for presentation, and procured to 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. CX1X 

it the signature of every clergyman within his juris- 
diction. 

"We have not been behindhand," says he to his 
brother, " with the rest of the loyal and right minded 
portion of the community. We have forwarded a 
petition fully and respectably signed, against the 
Roman Catholic claims. I drew it up, and Mr. — 
took it round for signatures. He started late on 
Thursday evening, and, to our astonishment, was here 
to breakfast on Saturday morning. On the Friday, 
he and his pony must have travelled very little short 
of seventy miles. Let us hope that these expressions 
of public opinion will not be thrown away upon our 
legislators. A want of toleration on religious sub- 
jects is to be deprecated ; at the same time we have 
reason to look upon any concession, made to the 
enemies of Protestantism, with a jealous eye. It is 
really to be lamented that so many of the aristocracy 
of our country should be so misled by party as to 
overlook the lessons of wisdom which are to be learned 
from the records of history, and so blinded as not to 
see that vigilance and restraint are necessary, and 
that any concessions are totally incompatible with the 
security of a monarchical and Protestant government. 
There are many enlightened men among the Catho- 
lics, it is true ; but their religion is unaltered, and 
human nature is the same. Theirs is a religion which 
scruples at nothing for the accomplishment of its pur- 
poses, for securing the resumption of absolute and 
degrading power over the minds and bodies of men, 



CXX MEMO IK OF THE 

Until, therefore, it can clearly be proved that they 
would not abuse the power conceded to them, it will 
be impossible to treat them on equal terms with our- 
selves, and it would be impolitic as well as unwise 
to trust them. Those misguided Protestants who 
allow themselves to be carried away by party zeal 
from the consideration of these things, will rue the 
day that they ever stood up as advocates of so unrigh- 
teous a cause ; they will find to their cost the truth 
of the maxim, that prevention is better than cure. 
May I never live to see it !" He always conscien- 
tiously abstained from entering the political arena. 
In the election of members to serve in parliament, it 
was his habit to occupy neutral ground, except in 
contests of acknowledged difficulty, and then he sa- 
tisfied himself with tendering his silent vote. When 
he thought that the safety and the interests of the 
church and the state were endangered, he allowed 
neither his personal feelings on the one hand, nor the 
fastidious and inconsistent reprehensions of opposing 
parties on the other, to divert him from what he be- 
lieved to be his line of duty. 

Amidst his varied and arduous engagements he was 
now once more called to bow his head in sorrow : 

" His fond paternal heart had built a nest 
In blindness, all too near the river's edge." 

The little girl who has already been mentioned as 
having been the innocent cause of so much anxiety 
when at Bristol, had at this time nearly attained the 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. CXX1 

years of womanhood. Her education had been 
watched over with especial care. She was regarded 
with admiration and delight by her own family, was 
a universal favourite among her schoolfellows, and 
all the promises of life were opening around her. 
She was slender and elegant in her figure, elastic 
and graceful in her step. Her hair was light and 
glossy, her blue eyes were full of intelligence and 
animation, and she had a voice that seemed to be 
the utterance of kind and happy thoughts. Her 
natural grace and delicacy of character accorded 
with the loveliness of her form, and it may be truly 
said, that the sight of her kindled pleasure in every 
heart. This may in some measure account for her 
being so preeminently the object of esteem and affec- 
tion. She was probably the more beloved by her 
father on account of the striking resemblance which 
she bore to her mother. 

In the autumn of 1817, she and her sister had gone 
on a visit to some relations in the neighbourhood of 
Caermarthen. While there, she put on a dress that 
had not been sufficiently aired. The consequence 
was, that the symptoms of a fatal disease soon mani- 
fested themselves, and in the course of a few months 
she closed her eyes upon this earthly scene, and her 
pure and gentle spirit ascended to the God from 
whom it came. 

The subjoined letter from my father will more 
clearly explain the cause of her illness, and the state 
of his feelings at the time : — 



CXX11 M KM OIK OF THE 

"MY DEAR BROTHER, Lampeter, June 18th, 1818- 

" Since I wrote to you last, I have again experienced 
a severe affliction. It is my lot to be often strug- 
gling with the waves of adversity ; but now, whether 
it may be owing to increasing age, or to the unusual 
accumulation of sorrows, I know not, I am almost 
overwhelmed ; and under the extreme depression, I 
am ready to exclaim in the words of the patriarch of 
old, ' All these things are against me.' 

" From the tenor of my last letter, you will proba- 
bly have anticipated what I am about to say. In Sep- 
tember, Caroline and Fanny went on a visit to Caer- 
marthen and Gelly ; while there Caroline caught a 
cold, so slight that it was not attended to. During 
her stay the weather proved very unfavourable, and 
her cough increased. As I was not with her, her 
youth and spirits tended to make her disregard all 
prudent precautions, and her disorder at last termi- 
nated in an inflammation of the lungs. When she 
returned home, I thought her unwell, but did not 
apprehend her to be in any danger. She continued 
for a few weeks in a state of debility and languor, 
and she was taken to Aberayron from an idea that 
the sea air might prove beneficial to her. A little 
more than a week ago, an improvement in her spirits, 
and a pretty bloom (but it was of an unearthly kind) 
that flushed her cheek, deluded me into a hope of 
returning health, and I had some intentions of allow- 
ing her to remain under the care of her kind friends 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. 



CXX111 



Mrs. and Miss Felix; but as I had my gig, and she 
seemed inclined to come home, I brought her back 
with me. On Monday the 8th instant, she and her 
sister went to Hafod to consult Dr. Rogers, and re- 
manied there that night. Dr. and Mrs. Rogers were 
extremely kind to them, and pressed them to pro- 
long their stay. She returned the following day 
rather worse, but I attributed this to fatigue and the 
heat of the weather ; on that evening she retired to 
her bed rather earlier than usual, and she never 
quitted it afterwards but to have it made. Last 
Sunday she was so unwell that I staid at home, and 
engaged a neighbour to do duty for me. She re- 
quested me to read a chapter in the Bible to her, as 
I used to do daily, and I read to her the lessons of 
the day and the Visitation of the Sick, to which she 
paid great attention, occasionally interrupting me with 
questions, and making her own sensible and devout 
remarks. Yesterday I went to school as usual, and 
continued to run in from time to time to inquire how 
she found herself : as she appeared much inclined to 
sleep, I was willing to flatter myself that the insidi- 
ous complaint was taking a favourable turn. When- 
ever she saw me distressed for her, she assured me 
* she was free from pain, and what a blessing that was ; 
that she was very happy, and hoped to be more 
so.' I would then ask the grounds of her hope ; and 
she would answer, 'the blood of Christ is my only 
plea ; my Saviour is my all in all.' I was called up 
at a very early hour, rather before day-break, this 



CXXIV MEMOIR OK THE 

morning, and found her declining rapidly, — nature 
was sinking fast under the weight of the disorder; 
and seeing me unable to repress my tears, as I gazed 
with anguish on her pallid cheek, she exclaimed, 
putting out her delicate and emaciated hand, ' Dear 
papa, do not cry ; God bless you !' — and expired a few 
minutes after, without a groan or any symptoms of 
suffering. She was always a most excellent crea- 
ture, good humoured, dutiful, affectionate, and sweet 
tempered ; and it may be truly said of her, as was 
said of another person on a similar occasion, 

" She never gave her father grief but when she died." 

"I promised myself that she would live to be a com- 
fort to me in my declining years, and an honour to 
the family ; but my hopes are frustrated, and she has 
been cut down, as a flower of the field, in the midst 
of her sweetness. I cannot help dwelling on these 
things, though I am convinced of the inutility of re- 
pining, and of the necessity of submitting to the will 
of Providence. Bear with my weakness, and make 
some allowances for the feelings of nature. ' Jesus 
wept,' and he allows his people to weep also. You 
never lost a child, and consequently do not know 
what it is in this sense to be a father, and I hope you 
never will. May your sun ever shine, and your 
horizon always continue unclouded ! * # * * 

" I am, my dear brother, yours affectionately, 

" E. Williams." 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. CXXV 

Again he writes on the same melancholy subject. 
— "June 29th, 1818. " Accept my warmest thanks 
for your kind letter of condolence, and for the lively 
interest which you seem to take in my concerns. 
It is easier, however, though I give you every credit 
for your good intentions, to offer advice on these 
occasions than to take it. Heaven alone reserves to 
itself the power of soothing our sorrows ; and T 
endeavour, amidst the sympathy of friends, to have 
recourse to the only true comfort which we can find, 
and which, in the discharge of our Christian and pro- 
fessional duties, we recommend to others. I cannot 
help deeply regretting my loss. But I weep not as 
those who have no hope, for I have some ground for 
believing that my loss is her eternal gain : so that I 
may with justice adopt the language of the Shuna- 
mite, and say ' All is well.' 

" I was yesterday put to a severe trial, owing to the 
conduct of D — R — , who voluntarily engaged to 
come and take the duty for me, and never came. 
His promise had prevented me from accepting the 
services of another person who offered them; and 
though by good fortune I got a substitute in the 
morning, in the evening I had the very painful task 
of appearing before the congregation myself." 

It was some time before his mind recovered its 
wonted spring ; indeed the frequency of these strokes 
was evidently shattering his vigorous frame. He well 
knew that a gracious hand was in these visitations ; 
and where he could not trace he had learned to adore 



CX XVI MEMOIR OF THE 

and trust. Yet while his calm and holy mind sur- 
rendered itself to the Divine disposal, his resignation 
was not unmingled with the regrets and tears of 
human weakness. But the period was hastening on 
when his own pilgrimage would close, when he would 
draw his last sigh, when the storm would blow upon 
him no more, and his sorrows would all be over. 

At Lampeter in the year 1817 or 1818, when a 
committee De Lunatico Inquirendo was sitting, my 
father was called as a witness, and had frequent op- 
portunities of intercourse with the judge, Warren, and 
the counsel attending that committee. The judge 
was a good scholar, and a man of refined taste. 
There was on that account great congeniality between 
him and my father. They often met at table ; and 
many a tale, and many a classical pun which fell 
from their lips contributed to the amusement and de- 
light of not a few that were present. On one occasion 
my father in attempting to snuff a candle put it out. 
The judge made some witty remark upon my father's 
adroitness, when the latter elegantly confessed his 
error, and said, that the accident was an illustration 
of Horace's line, which he repeated with much 
humour: 

" Dum brevis esse labcro, obscurus fio." 

After this my father and the judge often corres- 
ponded ; and my father wrote to his friend a letter 
in Latin sapphics. It was thus headed : 

" Ad celebrem doctumque causidicum Dominum Warren; car- 
men salutandi munus ferens." 



REV. EL1EZER WILLIAMS. CXXY11 

The poem itself is lost. In the field of modern 
literature he ranged at large : he was familiar with 
the French, Italian, and Spanish languages; the first of 
them he spoke like a native. Theological researches, 
history, antiquities, and the belles lettres, were within 
the extensive compass of his miscellaneous studies. 
Thus with various and successive occupations, his 
mind was always maintained in active, intelligent, and 
profitable exercise, and this exercise he pursued with 
unabating ardour to the close of his life. 

When in society he was occasionally betrayed into 
that absence of mind which the French call Vetourdie. 
The writer remembers to have seen him bow to a 
company, on taking his leave, with his own hat upon 
his head, while he had his neighbour's in his hand. 
But whenever he was reminded of such a mistake as 
this, he would pass it off with some humorous remark, 
or with an anecdote. 

It is not in the writer's power to follow him through 
the various incidents of this part of his history, or 
even to enumerate the productions of his unwearied, 
elegant, and engaging pen. The number and variety 
of manuscripts which he left behind him, although 
they are partly destroyed, bear ample testimony to 
the persevering activity of his mind. Many of them 
abound with striking thoughts, and are written always 
in a perspicuous, and often in a richly ornamented 
style, with strong marks of erudition, judgment and 
taste. 

He possessed a highly finished address and a win- 



CXXV111 MEMOIR OF THE 

ning affability. His whole character and deport- 
ment were marked both by Christian gentleness and 
by an unaffected and most honourable bearing, such as 
forcibly recommended the richness of his conversation. 
He had nothing of self-admiring vanity, and nothing 
of intellectual pride. The humility of a man pos- 
sessing a superior mind, and of an experienced Chris- 
tian, pervaded alike his manners in the social circle, 
and his professional ministrations in the pulpit; by 
the bed of sickness, and in the house of mourning. 
It may be best known to those who had opportunities 
of witnessing his excellencies, how kind and generous 
and noble was his heart ; how entirely divested he 
was of self, how considerate towards others, how in- 
defatigable in his labours to promote the temporal 
and eternal welfare of his fellow creatures. Many 
persons, now eminent in the world, unhesitatingly 
ascribe much of their success in life, under the Divine 
blessing, to his judicious advice and friendly care. 

Tn this connexion the writer cannot satisfy himself 
without presenting to his readers a letter which he 
had the pleasure of receiving a few months ago from 
one of his father's most talented and estimable pupils. 

Ashley, near Chichester, 
"MY DEAR SIR, Oct. 8th, 1838. 

" It is with a melancholy pleasure that, in compliance 
with your request, I send you the accompanying cer- 
tificate. I was not a little surprised and interested 
to find that your revered and honoured father was 



REV. ELTEZER WILLIAMS. CXX1X 

married in the very church in which I myself began, 
and for seven years continued my ministry, and in 
which, nearly thirty years after him, I was myself 
married. Indeed I had not the least idea that he had 
ever been near Chichester, although I saw him after 
I was first settled there, 

" The scenes of bygone years, to which your let- 
ter, and the announcement it contained, gave rise in 
my mind, you may well imagine, were not a little 
vivid and affecting. It is now full twenty-five years 
since I had the privilege of being under your excel- 
lent father's instructions. I was then quite a youth, 
and you and your brothers and sisters were quite 
children. I dare say we should not now recognize 
each other. Since that period I have passed through 
many scenes at home and abroad ; and you have, now 
for many years, been exercising your ministry, I trust 
faithfully and zealously. I was at Caernarvon three 
years ago, and regretted much that I could not have 
the pleasure of seeing you. 

M Of your kind-hearted and highly gifted father, I 
can only express a feeling common, I believe, to all 
those of his pupils who were in any degree capable 
of appreciating his character, — that of profound re- 
verence and lasting attachment. To his kind and 
early patronage, I shall always feel myself largely 
indebted ; and to his marked and distinguishing at- 
tention I owe much of the little progress which I 
have since been enabled to make in the various 
walks of literature and science. His genius excited 

k 



CX XX MEMOIR OF THE 

my admiration ; bis high and varied attainments 
tended to elevate my ideas of learning ; and his kindly 
notice of my exertions encouraged and stimulated my 
powers. With these feelings towards the author, I 
cannot for a moment hesitate to give you my name 
as a subscriber to his works; and I trust that your 
attempt to rescue from oblivion the remains of one so 
highly distinguished for elegant accomplishments, to 
say nothing of still more estimable qualities of a 
moral and religious nature, will meet with extensive 
encouragement. 

"I remain, dear sir, very faithfully yours, 

"J Davies." 

My father never suffered attacks to be made on 
religion, or offensive language of any kind to be used, 
without manifesting his displeasure, and when he 
could not rebuke the delinquent, he would silently 
retire. The writer remembers an instance. A per- 
son of the rank and education of a gentleman, whom 
my father met at the house of a common friend, but 
with whom he had not been previously acquainted, 
was so profane and thoughtless as to interlard what- 
ever fell from his lips with oaths and coarse expres- 
sions. So inveterate had the habit become, that the 
presence of a clergyman could not check it. My 
father having first given some hints which could not 
well be misunderstood, that he disliked such lan- 
guage, and that he would not endure it, at last 
walked out of the room ; nor would he again enter 



REV. ELTEZER WILLIAMS. CXXX1 

the house until he had an opportunity of expressing 
his sentiments upon the subject. " If," said he to 
his friend, " you expect me to visit you, such men 
must not be of the party, for I cannot meet on the 
footing of associates, nor can I even recognize as 
gentlemen, whatever their station in society, or their 
wealth may be, persons who thus dishonour my 
Master's name." 

In the month of November, 1818, he went over to 
Ireland to receive a small legacy left to his children, 
by the will of Col. Armstrong. He travelled on 
horseback to North Wales, taking one of his sons 
with him. Whilst staying in Dublin he well im- 
proved his time, and made himself acquainted with 
all the objects of curiosity in the place. As he had 
a taste for archaeological researches, he could not 
fail to be interested in the well-known claims of this 
beautiful city to the highest antiquity. He spent 
four or five weeks here, and occupied himself in 
visiting such of the public buildings and institutions 
as he had not previously seen ; and he was much 
gratified not only with them, but also with the hos- 
pitality — the " ceadmillefailte" which is so peculiar 
to the Irish. He accepted of invitations from the 
fellows of Trinity College, and was conducted to the 
library, the museum, the laboratory, the chapel, and 
the spacious gardens and walks. When in the 
library he employed himself in examining several 
ancient and rare manuscripts, particularly the Greek 
manuscript of the New Testament, which belonged to 



CXXXU MKMOIlt OF Till. 

Montfortius, called the Codex Montfortianus, and 
cited by Erasmus under the title of " Codex Britan- 
nicus."* From this important volume Bishop Bur- 
gess had commissioned my father to make extracts. 
Amono- other curiosities which arrested his attention 

- o 

were the four gospels of Columbkill ; and some old 
translations of the Bible, by WicklifFe, Pervie, Am- 
brose, and Usher. 

On his return homewards from Ireland, he crossed 
over the hills into Radnorshire, in order that he might 
fulfil engagements which he had made in that part 
of the principality. It was late in the day in Ja- 
nuary, 1819, when he left Aberystwith. The tract 
of country through which he had to travel was ex- 
tremely intricate, and the night was both dark and 
cold. This journey, undertaken without any fore- 
thought of its natural consequences, brought on a 
disease, which, rendered more alarming as it was by 
the influence of domestic calamity, and of straitened 
circumstances, soon brought him down to the valley 
of the shadow of death. 

He complained of no illness, and continued with- 
out interruption to perform his routine of duties with 
the same energy and perseverance as ever. But it 
was already too apparent to his anxious friends, that 
his sinewy and robust frame was beginning to bend 



* " Repertus est apud Anglos Grsecus Codex unus, in quo 
habetur, 1 Joann. v. 7., quod in vulgaris deest." 

Erasm. Apol. ad Stunicam. 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. CXXXlll 

towards the earth, and that the seeds of an insidious 
malady had taken root. 

He had been appointed one of the judges of the 
prize compositions of the Eisteddfod that took place 
at Carmarthen in July 1819. The aim of this in- 
stitution, it is well known, was the promotion of 
literature and science in Wales ; or, in the words of 
the preamble, it was designed for " the preservation 
of ancient and British literature, poetical, historical, 
antiquarian, sacred and moral, as well as for the en- 
couragement of music." 

" The rules of the Cambrian Society," my father 
observes in a letter to his brother, dated, December 
7th, 1818, "I will bring with me. You should es- 
tablish an auxiliary society to act in concert with it 
in every county in North Wales. 1 expect much 
good from it. The subjects proposed are for the 
Englyn, ' The harp new strung.' For the Cy wydd, 
' The victories of Sir Thomas Picton.' For the 
Awdl, 'The death of the Queen.' For the two 
English Essays, " The language and learning of 
Britain under the Roman government," with a par- 
ticular reference to the testimony of Martial, 

' Dicitur et nostros cantare Britannia versus' 

and the distinct characters and comparative advan- 
tages of the bardic institutions of Carmarthen and 
Glamorgan. 

" I am nominated judge for South Wales, in con- 
junction with Iolo Morgannwg. It is a nomination 



CXXX1V MEMOIR OF THE 

which I fear will cause jealousy and displeasure ; 
and which will preclude me from writing. What do 
you think of the following Englyn ? " On the harp 
new strung :" 

1 Eos wanwyn yn seinio — Dadebrwyd 
Dihunwyd di heno, 
Rhaibiaist o'r hin oer heibio 
Dy fwyn bryd yw haf ein bro.' 

He thus writes again : 

" MY DEAR BROTHER, Lampeter June 20th, 1819. 

" I enclose you a printed paper sent to me by the 
bishop. The Bath Harmonic Society will attend, 
and there will be a concert for the benefit of the 
Welsh Harpers who come from a distance. There 
can, therefore, be no doubt that any good harper 
from your part of the country will find his account 
in attending, though I cannot take upon me to invite 
him, lest the responsibility should fall on me. We 
want amateurs as judges of the music. Robert 
Davies, of Nantglyn, and a curate in Denbighshire, 
are judges for North Wales. I have not heard their 
opinion : I have given you mine. Iolo Morgannwg 
complains immeasurably of all the productions. He 
says that they are " horridly incorrect;" that they be- 
tray a want both of invention and of taste ; and that he 
hopes no premium will be awarded to any of them. 
Some among them are beyond question, " horridly 
incorrect," and very inelegant, but they are not all 
bad. I pointed out two which I thought good, and 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. CXXXV 

I perceive the Secretary, David Rowlands* is of the 
same opinion. 

"I shall be glad of your countenance and support 
on that day, as I fear innovation. My motto is, 
" Nolumus leges Cambriae mutari," and I am deter- 
mined to be guided by it. 

" I remain, my dear brother, affectionately yours, 

" E. Williams.'' 

The following letter gives an account of what 
took place at the meeting to which these communi- 
cations refer : — 

" MY DEAR BROTHER, Lampeter, July 17th, 1819. 

" I am sorry to hear of David Thomas's illness, and 
that he was prevented from attending our session. 
Things succeeded far beyond our most sanguine ex- 
pectation, and the meeting of the bards was accom- 
panied by many circumstances that tended to give it 
unusual eclat. The meeting, in the unavoidable ab- 
sense of Lord Dynevor, was opened by the Bishop of 
the Diocese, in an address of some length, stating the 
objects of the institution. It was uncommonly well 
received ; his lordship was followed by Iolo Mor- 
gannwg in a short written speech, explaining the na- 
tural pursuits of the bards, the objects to which they 
should confine themselves, and the good which they 



. * The late Rev. David Rowlands, at that time curate of Car- 
marthen. He had previously been missionary at St. John's, 
Newfoundland. 



CXXXV1 MEMOIR OF THE 

have done in Wales, especially in the preservation of 
the language. But I have no time to enter into de- 
tail. Walter Davies*was the great champion on the 
occasion ; he carried off two prizes for compositions 
in verse, and one for the best composition in prose. 
He read the two former extremely well : in reading 
the latter he was a little provincial as to his accent, but 
he was very much applauded through the whole of 
his recitations. Iolo tied a blue ribbon round Mr. 
Davies's arm as a mark of bardic distinction, f when 
he was placed in the chair, and he made a druid of 
the bishop by tying a white ribbon round his arm, a 
ceremony to which the bishop submitted with a 
placid smile. Galarnadwr is supposed to be your 
quondam parishioner at Llanberis, Guttyn Peris. J 
On account of his being, for some reason or other, 
absent, the reading of his composition devolved upon 
me. This task I performed as well as I could ; I 
found the disadvantage of not being very well ac- 
quainted with the hand. You may tell him that his 
poem was received with frequently repeated bursts 
of applause, with clapping of hands. He is to have 
£10. Your friend Jones of Llanfair is Gaer,§£10, 
for his essay on the ' Learning of the Britons ;' and 

* The Rev. Walter Davies, then rector of Manafon, now rec- 
tor of Llanrhaiadr yn Mochnant. 

f In imitation of the ancient insignia of bardism. 

X The late Mr. Griffith Williams, afterwards of Llandegai. 

§ The Rev. John Jones, now rector of Llanllyfni. 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. CXXXV11 

Dafydd ddu o* Eryri,§ £10, as an old bard of superior 
merit. I pleaded his cause very strenuously, and 
at last had his name taken down, with a promise that 
an annual pension of £10 should be allowed him. 
This proposal the chair seconded with some ardour : 
there were hundreds of persons of the first rank pre- 
sent, although none but subscribers were admitted, 
and as all were curious and eager to see and hear 
what passed, a great number paid their subscription 
money of one guinea at the door. Never was there 
such an Eisteddfod at Carmarthen since the year 
1451 ; and it is said that it exceeded any ever held 
at any other place. It was a great disappointment to 
the ladies that they were not admitted at the opening, 
to hear the recitations ; but they were present at 
every other part of the ceremony, and a Miss Jones 
was admitted as a bard. Blayney of Newtown got 
the silver harp, together with a donation of thirty 
guineas ; Jones, the Prince's bard, invested him with 
the insignia. When I have time I will send you a 
fuller account. It is supposed that the next Eistedd- 
fod will be held at Dolgellau, under the sanction of 
the Cambrian Society ; but though all in South 
Wales ardently wish to co-operate and to afford all 
the aid they can, for fear of giving umbrage it is 
left to the gentlemen of North Wales to fix the next 
place of meeting, to name the president, and to 
choose the subjects for the prizes. It is meant that Sir 

* The late Mr. David Thomas. 



CXXXV111 MEMOllt OF THE 

Robert Vaughan, supported by such noblemen and 
gentlemen of the north as may feel interested in the 
success of the institution, should be requested to 
take upon himself the arrangements. If Sir Robert 
can be prevailed on to accept of the office, it will 
greatly forward the interests of the society ; a fitter 
person can scarcely be found amongst the aristocracy 
of Wales, in point either of rank or of genuine 
British patriotism, Yr hen Gymro Glan. 

"I trust no weak and frivolous jealousies will be 
permitted to retard the success of a society, which, 
if established on a grand scale, may operate wonder- 
fully for the benefit of the language, the literature, 
and the music of the country. Several letters having 
been received from the literati abroad, particularly 
from France and Italy, it is hoped the circumstance 
may have an extensive effect, and be the means of 
bringing to light many important articles, as well in 
language as in antiquities. Roberts of Holyhead, 
and a Jones of some other place in Anglesey, were 
here, and designated themselves as bards : they will 
probably call upon you, and give you an account of 
what they saw and heard. They appeared to be 
deeply impressed with the respect shewn them, and so 
did all the North Wales bards and musicians present. 

" Iolo, on the third day after dinner, mounted the 
table, with a full glass in his hand, and delivered an 
appropriate and animated speech, in praise of the 
Welsh language, and in commendation of the literary 
pursuits of the most learned inhabitants of the prin- 



REV. ELLEZER WILLIAMS. CXXX1X 

cipality. After many compliments to the memory of 
the dead, and a warm eulogy on the merits of the 
living, he earnestly entreated all parts of Wales to 
concur with ardour and unanimity in the furtherance 
of so patriotic a plan, supported as it is by men of 
the first character, and having in view, as it unques- 
tionably has, the best purposes. He concluded with 
proposing the thanks of all present to the gentlemen 
who had attended from North Wales, wishing them 
a safe and pleasant journey home, and expressing a 
hope that his countrymen and he might have the 
felicity of returning the visit next year. These sen- 
timents were uttered in good Welsh, and delivered as 
well as could be expected from a man of his age. 
The speech was received with raptures of applause. 
But I will tell you more when we meet, and that, I 
promise myself, will be soon. With best wishes for 
you and your family, I am, my dear brother, yours 
most affectionately, " E. Williams." 

" P. S. My kind respects at Plastirion, Glangwna, 
Coed Helen, and to all friends round Snowdon. I was 
at Gelly last week : my mother rode with me to 
church." 

It was my father's intention, had his life been 
spared, to visit his friends in North Wales, during 
the Christmas vacation of this year ; but the Great 
Disposer of events ordained it otherwise. " Peter and 
I/' says my father, in a letter to his brother, dated 



Cxi MEMOIR OF THE 

Dec. 3, 1819, "hope to set off' on the Monday after 
Christmas day, and to be with you as soon as we can 
in the course of that week." In another letter of the 
22nd of the same month, evidently written with a 
tremulous hand, he says : — 

" MY DEAR BROTHER, Lampeter Dec. 22nd, 1819. 

" I had looked forward with much pleasure to my 
visit to your romantic country. Peter had been for 
the last month superintending the preparation of his 
equestrian paraphernalia, polling and trimming his 
pony, and cramming him with some of my best oats. 
But there has been sad lamentation here this week. 
On Monday last Mr. Jones * of Derry Ormond called 
to invite me to dinner, and to spend the night with 
him. After looking at me some time, and feeling my 
pulse, he said that he had changed his mind, and 
that instead of requesting me to visit him, he should 
request me to retire to bed, and to abide by his pre- 
scriptions ; to which alas ! I have been obliged to 
submit. And now I am likely to spend as pleasant 
a Christmas as the author of" Awdl y caws." Only 
that I have pills instead of cheese, and gruel and 
barley water instead of whey. But to be serious, 
my tenement of clay has had a sad shattering, and I 

* This gentleman, whose stated residence was in Portland 
Place, London, had a country seat near Lampeter. He was 
brought up as a physician, but being possessed oflarge landed pro- 
perty, never practised, excepting occasionally amongst his most 
intimate friends. One of his sisters is the present Lady Astley 
Cooper. 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. Cxli 

sometimes think it is breaking up. Although I know 
I must quietly await the Great Master Builder's time 
for being turned out, I naturally feel anxious for my 
poor motherless children. 

The son of the landlord of an inn in your neigh- 
bourhood called here lately, and introduced himself 
to me as a shipwrecked mariner. He said his vessel 
was lost in Carmarthen Bay, and that he with diffi- 
culty escaped with his life. I do not know whether 
his tale is true or not; but as he had the appearance 
of an honest fellow, I was unwilling to suppose him 
an impostor. I wrote to you by him to this effect, 
and then informed you of my intention to set off for 
North Wales on Monday next ; but now I am com- 
pletely laid up, and am very ill. I am, dear brother, 
yours most sincerely, " E. Williams." 

" P. S. I can scarcely hold my pen. I am even too 
much enfeebled to look this over ; so excuse all 
errors.' 1 

Hitherto he had enjoyed, for the most part, an ex- 
cellent state of health, and had been capable without 
fatigue of going through the greatest labour, both 
bodily and intellectual. But he confided too much 
in the vigour of his constitution, and his extreme 
want of care was now beginning to produce its me- 
lancholy effect. He continued for some days longer 
in the state which he so affectingly described in his 
last letter, without much alteration in his appearance, 



cxlii MEMOIR OF THE 

or any great increase of his disorder. He felt, not- 
withstanding, a conviction that he was hastening to 
the tomb, and he looked forward to it with calmness 
as a place of rest. He uttered no complaint : not a 
murmur was ever heard from his lips, nor were the 
faintest traces of chagrin or of undue anxiety at any 
time visible in his countenance. Neither the loss of 
appetite nor the decay of strength, neither languid 
days nor restless nights could break the settled com- 
posure of his mind. He would now and then as he 
paced up and down his room, (for each day he rose 
from his bed,) stand with uplifted eyes as if breathing 
a silent prayer to Him whose ear is ever open ; and on 
a particular occasion when one of his sons observing 
this, expressed a hope that he was not in very great 
pain, he said, " No, my dear boy, thank God I am 
not in any great suffering of body ; but my life is 
very precarious, and my mind is occasionally cast 
down at the idea of leaving you all without a guardian 
or a guide. But " he added, as if desirous of correct- 
ing himself, " He who feeds the sparrows, and provides 
for the raven his food when the young ones cry, will 
not forget you." Nor have they been forgotten ; for 
amidst all their struggles and sorrows, those who 
have survived their lamented earthly parent have had 
reason to say, with adoring wonder, " Goodness and 
mercy have followed us all the days of our lives." 

At other times my father addressed his children in 
the same spirit ; but when he found that it overcame 
their feelings, he abstained from any further obser- 



REV. ELTEZER WILLIAMS. CxliH 

vation of the kind, though he failed not to give them 
his counsel as long as he possessed the power of 
utterance. 

His path, as it is unnecessary to inform the reader, 
had often been far from smooth : one light after an- 
other had been quenched at his side, and he had 
passed through trials of his faith and constancy, 
which he had found it difficult to bear. But before 
he was altogether confined for the last time to the 
chamber of sickness, he had other domestic visitations, 
compared with which all that he had previously en- 
dured was as nothing in the scale. The measure of 
his sorrow was now full. He had received his death- 
blow, and, poor sufferer as he was, little remained for 
him but, like the stricken deer, to hide his head and 
weep in secrecy and in silence. 

It had ever been the custom in my father's family 
to keep the anniversary of the birth of one of the 
children. Such a season was marked with nothing 
like extravagant revelry or sumptuous entertainment. 
A relation who usually took a prominent part was now 
and then disposed to signalize the day with a more dis- 
tinguishing regard than was thought to be quite con- 
sistent with our general plainness and moderation ; 
but when such an attempt was made, my father never 
failed to discourage it. As the anniversary was in 
the beginning of January, it occured this year during 
my father's illness, at a time when he was unable to 
participate in the affectionate congratulations of this 
domestic festival. We were anxious, therefore, to 



Cxliv MEMOIR OF THE 

dispense with it. But he, always more attentive to 
the gratification of others than to his own comfort, 
insisted on our inviting our young friends, and cele- 
brating the day in the usual manner. He took 
especial care, however, to tell us, that although these 
commemorative periods were in most cases looked 
upon in a worldly point of view, and made too often 
excuses for intemperance and for boisterous mirth, 
they should rather be regarded as seasons of extra- 
ordinary gratitude to God, as the memorials of past 
blessings, and as incitements to a life of greater cir- 
cumspection and usefulness. He told us that, in the 
spirit of the example set by the patriarchs of old, we 
ought then to erect pillars of rejoicing and of praise 
in the unaffected, overflowing gratitude of our hearts. 
The day consequently was kept, but it passed without 
its wonted gladness, as my father's absence was like 
a cloud in sunshine, and contributed not a little to 
cast a gloom over the tenor of our thoughts. It was 
the last anniversary that he lived to witness, or that 
we, as a once happy family, were ever permitted to 
spend together. 

On the following day, which was Sunday, being 
unable to obtain any assistance in his church, he un- 
dertook the duty himself. After reading the service, 
which evidently cost him much exertion, he pro- 
ceeded to the pulpit. His text was, Isaiah lv. 1. 
" Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, 
and he that hath no money ; come ye buy and eat : 
yea, come buy wine and milk, without money, and 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. Cxlv 

without price." His cheeks were deadly pale, the 
usual fire and expression of his eye had nearly va- 
nished, and his voice was languid and tremulous. 
In short, his whole appearance was of a nature so 
deeply affecting that few who were present could 
ever forget it. They felt as if their revered pastor 
was taking his public leave of them, and was inviting 
them, for the last time, to the waters of life. They 
seemed to participate in the distress of the Ephesian 
elders, " sorrowing most of all that they should see 
his face no more." 

On the 6th of January, my father once more wrote 
to his brother. It was the last letter that he ever 
penned ; some parts of it are almost illegible. 

" MY DEAR BROTHER, 

" Ma.vy thanks for your affectionate letter, I think it 
did me as much good as anything I have had to take 
since I have been ill. I can only say of myself that 
I seem to have fought all my battles under all the 
circumstances of the case as well as could be ex- 
pected, and that I am, thank God, still alive. My 
life is a life of storms and tempests ; as soon as one 
tempest is calmed, another is raised. In fact, I can 
find no harbour of permanent safety on this side of the 
grave. I have been prevented from answering your 
letter sooner by some medical operation or other, 
which I was obliged to undergo. On Monday I had 
a blister put on my side, to-day I have had another 
applied to my chest ; so that you must not expect a 

1 



cxlvi 



MI MOIR OF THE 



man to write with ease, when suffering from the 
drawings and writhings of such applications. You 
are right in your conjecture as to the cold which I 
brought from Dublin and carried with me over the 
Radnorshire hills. I neglected it too long, and it 
is the cause of my present illness. Hassall * is 
gone to London to meet young Marsden, son of the 
government chaplain in New South Wales. He is 
a lad of sixteen, and is described as a fine youth. 
Until I can discover the bent of his mind, I cannot 
say whether he is intended for law, physic, or divi- 
nity. 

" I have exerted myself to write more than on 
any other occasion, since my illness, but I cannot 
express myself to my satisfaction. I am so weak 
that I am unable to sit down to my studies for any 
continuance as I used to do ; and the heterogeneous 
doses that I take have so affected me, that I scarcely 
feel a pleasure in anything. My love to my sister. 
I intended writing to her a long letter, but do not 
find myself equal to the task. For many weeks I 
have not been out of my room; I have been sub- 
sisting most of the time on water-gruel. My me- 
dical attendant, at present, allows me a little 
chicken panada, and chicken broth ; but what I 
relish most is a little custard which Fanny makes 
for me. The stomach is weak, and rejects most 



* A pupil of my father's, from New South Wales, and now 
(1839), a missionary in that country. 



REV. ELIEZER WILLTAMS. Cxlvii 

things, when a nausea comes on, which I endeavour, 
when awake, to keep off with cold water : added to 
this is a constant hiccough, which is very trouble- 
some. The children are very attentive to me : Fanny 
cooks for me, and reads to me, so that with all my 
deprivations, I have many comforts left. Adieu. 
Yours affectionately, 

" E. Williams." 

It had now become apparent to all, that the 
earthly house of his tabernacle was soon to be dis- 
solved. He was tolerably free from pain, but, as he 
states in the preceding letters, he was tormented 
by a constant hiccough, to which he had been more 
or less subject, for the space of a fortnight, or three 
weeks. About eight o'clock on the morning of Thurs- 
day, 20th of January, 1820, 

" A day for ever sad, for ever dear," 

he had as usual risen from his bed ; one of his sons 
assisted him in dressing : his mind was perfectly 
composed and even cheerful. If he had before been 
uneasy about the desolate circumstances of his 
family, he was now so no longer ; for he seemed to 
be absorbed in one feeling, one solicitude, one em- 
ployment, that of examining into his spiritual condi- 
tion, and of looking forward to the awful scenes 
which were soon to open upon his soul. 

About noon he called for his draught of medicine ; 
and just as he had taken it, he was suddenly seized 



Cxlviii MEMOIR OF THE 

with a fit which convulsed his whole frame, and he 
held the wine glass with so firm a grasp, that it could 
not, without difficulty, be taken from his hand. Two 
of his children were then by his side, and their loud 
and bitter cries forassistance disturbed him. He said, 
" Hush, my dear children : do not be alarmed, the 
trial is nearly come, the terrors of death have fallen 
upon me; it is medicine to heal the soul that is 
wanted now, and vain, at such a moment, is the help 
of man. Be good ; be virtuous ; ask for God's Holy 
Spirit to guide you, and we shall soon meet again." 
While he was thus talking to his children, and quiet- 
ing their minds, some of his friends and pupils called. 
They saw that he was sinking away, and begged to 
remain with him that they might have the benefit of 
his last instructions. He was evidently pleased with 
their attention, and shook them each with great 
affection by the hand. His thoughts still ran in their 
well worn channel of ministerial and school engage- 
ments, and he omitted not to pour out his blessing, 
and to offer suitable admonitions. 

One of the young men among his visitors was on 
the point of being ordained by the Bishop of London, 
and of going as a missionary to North America. In 
consequence of his old master's illness, he had been 
long waiting for credentials, and for other papers 
connected with his mission. But although he did 
not obtain all the letters that he required, he received 
those exhortations upon which, if we may be per- 
mitted to draw an inference from his subsequent 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. CXI IX 

success, he faithfully acted. My father told him, 
not only what to do, and upon whom to call in 
London, but how to conduct himself when he should 
enter the field of his ministerial labours. " Learn- 
ing," said he, " unless devoted to the best of pur- 
poses, to the glory of God and the salvation of souls, 
will be an incumbrance to you in your heaven-directed 
pilgrimage ; it will be a loss rather than a gain, a 
curse rather than a blessing. I can speak from ex- 
perience, and can well say, 

1 Heu, vitam perdidi, operose nihil agendo!' 

" Yes," he added, " I have paid more attention to 
the perishable things of this world, than a creature 
possessing an immortal soul ought to have paid. 
This deeply distresses me now ; may God forgive 
me. We can cling only to our Saviour's atonement 
for a hope of acceptance, and for an acquittal at his 
awful bar. May you, ere you stand there, know 
what is meant by a life of faith upon the Son of God." 
He spoke these words in the tone of an echo from 
the bosom of a sepulchre, and as it was the language 
of one who was actually on the verge of eternity, it 
made a deep impression on those who heard it. 

His address to the young clergy present was also 
extremely solemn and affecting. " You may be 
convinced," said he, " that knowledge without true 
piety is of no avail at this trying hour. The frail 
body of the man of learning, as well as that of the 
unlearned, must, after a short period of pain and 



cl MEMOIR OF THE 

sorrow, return to its native dust : the only sure foun- 
dation that will stand the shock of death, is faith in 
the Saviour of sinners, the foundation stone laid in 
Zion, the living stone, that tried stone ; here we may 
securely rest all our hopes. My last advice to you is, 
be faithful ministers of Christ ; and may he bless 
your labours." 

After speaking thus for a full hour or more, he 
turned to his weeping children with a look of unut- 
terable tenderness : " My dear orphan children," said 
he, " crying you came into the world, and crying you 
may, probably, go through the world ; but I hope, 
when you are called hence, you may leave it re- 
joicing."* After pausing to take breath, he added, 
" O ! weep not thus, it breaks my heart to hear you ; 
you have a Father in heaven, who will watch over 
and protect you ; he is able to bestow more than he 
takes away ; to his care I commend you." 

It was now about half past five o'clock, and my 

* The sentiment bears a striking resemblance to that of the 
Persian epigram so exquisitely translated by Sir William Jones : 

" Thee on thy mother's knee, a new-born child, 
In tears we saw, when all around thee smiled ; 
So live, that sinking in thy last long sleep, 
Smiles may be thine when all around thee weep." 

Five of his children survived my father : Maria Jane Bettenson, 
born January 29, 1799, married November 20, 1819; died July 
22, 1822. Frances Charlotte Martha, born July 29, 1800, 
died August, 1838. St. George Armstrong Williams, born 
January 1, 1804. Peter Bayly, born April 27, 1805, died Au- 
gust 31, 1823. Eliezer Nugent, born December, 1808. 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. cli 

father hung his head on the chair in which he was 
sitting, quite exhausted ; but the powers of his mind 
were unimpaired, even to the last. His breath began 
to fail him. While we stood around, we thought 
from the motion of his lips, that he was breathing 
a silent prayer. A friend present repeated with 
deep solemnity, those beautiful words from the book 
of the Revelation ; " I heard a voice from heaven 
saying unto me, Write, From henceforth blessed are 
the dead which die in the Lord : Even so, saith the 
Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and 
their works do follow them." A female friend quoted 
with great emotion, a part of Pope's well known ode: 

" Vital spark of heavenly flame." 

My dear father's breathing became more and more 
irregular, until at length, without a struggle or even 
a sigh, he fell asleep in Jesus. 

As soon as the melancholy event became known 
in the little town of Lampeter, the sorrow not of the 
wealthier inhabitants only, but of the poorest of the 
poor, could not be misinterpreted. It was sincere, 
and deep, and general. There was but one opinion, 
one sentiment, one voice. All esteemed and all 
lamented him. " Our good old master is gone; we 
have lost our friend ; our kind-hearted pastor is no 
more !" These were the exclamations on every side. 

His death was thus announced in the Carmarthen 
Journal : " Lately at Lampeter, Cardiganshire, aged 
sixty-six, universally lamented by a large circle of 



C'lii MEMOIR OF THE 

friends and a disconsolate family, the Rev. Eliezer 
Williams, M. A. If we fairly estimate both his rare 
endowments and his virtues, we may justly consider 
him as one of the most splendid luminaries that ever 
shed its lustre on the principality of Wales. 

" Possessing a character brightened with every dis- 
tinguishing quality, he lived respected as an historian, 
a scholar, a poet, and a divine ; unassuming and 
modest in every action of his life, he was dignified 
without pride, and charitable without ostentation. 
His time and thoughts were devoted to the general 
benefit of mankind ; and the advantage which his 
pupils derived from him in the capacity of a teacher, 
will be remembered with gratitude as sincere as it is 
ineffaceable. " 

As my father was beloved while living, and re- 
gretted in death, it can be no matter of surprise that 
he was honoured at his funeral. The day of that 
solemnity presented a striking evidence of the esteem 
in which he was ever held. A large concourse of 
persons, including many of different denominations 
of Christians, assembled on this sad occasion. The 
clergy, upwards of twenty in number, walking two 
abreast, preceded the corpse, which was followed 
first by the relations of the deceased, next by his 
pupils, and then by the Sunday school children, and 
a long procession of individuals, who had enjoyed his 
instructive society, and who were desirous of paying 
to him this last tribute of respect. The church 
was crowded in every part to excess. The service 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. cliii 

was read, and the funeral sermon was preached, by 
the Rev. Daniel Bo wen, M. A. who had been one 
of his intimate friends. His was indeed a painful 
task : it is not often that the feelings of friendship 
have been so severely tried. The text was, Luke 
xii. 37. " Blessed are those servants whom the Lord 
when he cometh shall find watching." The address 
was listened to with breathless attention, and drew 
forth many tears. During the interment, the family 
vault, which was situated near the altar, and which 
had around it a weeping throng, exhibited a scene 
that was at once solemn and beautiful ; while the 
impression of the funeral service, and of the singing, 
was deepened by the involuntary recollection, that 
the words now uttered at the grave of the departed 
pastor had been often pronounced by him over the 
remains of those whom he had committed to their 
last earthly abode, and that the psalms and hymns, the 
sound of which was now falling upon the ears of the 
congregation, were sung by his own pupils; who, 
from the first, encouraged by him, had conducted 
that part of the public worship, and brought it to a 
height of perfection which it seldom reaches. 

As soon as these solemnities were over, his 
children found themselves in a condition of help- 
lessness and sorrow, which no words can adequately 
describe. Young as they were, they could even 
then feel somewhat of the oppressive magnitude 
of their loss, and though a temporary asylum was 
most kindly afforded them by some of the neighbours, 



cliv MEMOIR OF THE 

they had to taste the bitterness of leaving a home 
which had so long been dearer to them than any 
other spot on earth, and they were but too sensible 
that they had to explore the path of life alone and 
unprotected, with no parent's eye to watch over them, 
no parent 's voice to warn or to encourage them, 
and no parent's hand to guide them. 

Inadequate as is the sketch which is here submit- 
ted to the candour and indulgence of the reader, the 
incidents recorded in it of my father's uneventful 
and unpretending history, are sufficient to render a 
formal delineation of his character superfluous. 

It ought, however, to be observed, that he was, in 
the best and only valuable sense of the expression, a 
public man, interested in every thing by which the 
welfare of the community at large, and especially of 
his countrymen could be promoted. For the duties 
of a public man, he was fitted by his activity of mind, 
by the clearness of his judgment, and by the purity 
of his principles. These qualities did much for his 
usefulness ; in fact they were essential to his influence, 
and they often enabled him to recommend success- 
fully to others the same philanthropic and generous 
spirit by which he was himself distinguished. 

He entered with earnestness into every design, 
which promised to open new fields of intellect around 
him, to spread enlarged habits of thought in his 
neighbourhood, and to befriend the poor and helpless. 
All these objects had his pecuniary aid, and to all of 
them he contributed, what is often of a far greater 



REV. EL1EZER WILLIAMS. civ 

value than silver and gold, he gave them his time, 
his thoughts, his counsel, " his love, his zeal." 

He seems to have felt the claim of every thing 
human on his sympathy and his services; that great 
maxim of Christianity, " no man liveth to himself," was 
engraven on the tablet of his heart. Without effort 
he conciliated the regards of friendship, and made 
himself, in an extraordinary degree, the object of re- 
spectful attachment both at home and abroad. Indeed 
he was finely gifted for all the offices of mutual kind- 
ness and generosity. Whatever might be the subject, 
his conversation was sure to be instructive and plea- 
sant ; he assumed no more than his part, but he took 
that part with readiness and ease. 

For the honour and efficacy of the established 
church he was deeply concerned ; and to its interests, 
wherever he could promote them, without being 
bigoted on the one hand, or fanatical on the other, he 
was willing to make any and every sacrifice. 

As a teacher of youth he has rarely been surpassed. 
His skill, his faithfulness, and his zeal, were repaid 
by the universal and ardent affection of his pupils. 
Perhaps never was a schoolmaster more sincerely be- 
loved, or, when his career was closed, more deeply 
lamented. 

In his most intimate domestic connexions in the 
sanctuary of his home, he was beyond measure dis- 
tinguished ; to all the members of his family an ob- 
ject of the most ardent attachment — their pride, their 
delight, their joy. What he was, how he lived among 



clvi 



MEMOIR OF THE 



them, what his spirit was, what his condescension, his 
benignity, his tenderness, there is nothing* in language 
to describe. Let the love, the gratitude, the mourn- 
ful yet sweet remembrance which embalms his me- 
mory in the bosoms of his surviving children, let 
these declare it. 

O ! yes, to his name, his ever dear and sacred 
name, there is a monument more durable than 
marble, in the good which he effected while living, 
and in the fine example which he left behind him ; 
and may we not humbly hope that when the morning 
of the resurrection shall break, and this mortal shall 
put on immortality, he will, through the merits of the 
Saviour in whom he trusted, enter upon a blessed 
inheritance, and have a place of honour assigned to 
him in those mansions of his Father's house, where all 
tears will be wiped away from all faces, and no voice 
will be heard but that of thankfulness and of praise ! 

In the parish church of Lampeter, is an elegant 
mural tablet, honourable alike to my father's cha- 
racter, and to the gratitude of his admiring pupils. 

M. S. 
Eliezer Williams, M.A. 
Ecclesise Menevensis Praeb. 
Hujus ecclesiae Vicarii 
Nee nou Lampetriensis Scholee 
Conditoris prseceptorisque, 
Viri dignissimi, 
In omni literarum genere doctissimi, 
Morum suavitate ornati, 
Magno mentis acumine prsediti, 
Sumraa erga Deum pietate, 



REV. ELIEZER WILLIAMS. clvii 

Erga homines benevolentia, 

Discipuli sui, quos sibi 

Paterno amore devinxit, 

Hoc marmor statuerunt. 

Ob. Jan. 20. A. D. 1820. jEtat. 68.* 

Oedd anwyl i'w gyd-ddynion 
Anwyl y'w yn nheulu Ion ; 
Holl lu y nef llawen frit 
O'i roddi 'n gymmar iddynt. 

* It should have been 66. 



APPENDIX. 



Page iv. line 9. " Son of the Rev. Peter Williams/' 

The following Memoir is written with so much unaffected 
simplicity, and breathes so admirable a spirit, that it can- 
not fail to interest the reader. 

THE LIFE OF THE LATE REV. PETER WILLIAMS, 

OF CARMARTHEN, WRITTEN BY HIMSELF. 

Both my parents were descended from reputable families : # 
before their marriage they resided in the town of Laugharn; 
but soon after their union, they took a considerable farm in 
the parish of Llansadwrnen, or Laugharn Marsh, near the 
boundary of those two parishes, and there I drew my 
first breath : as a lover of my country, and particularly of 
my native place, I wish that the inhabitants of that neigh- 
bourhood may enjoy much prosperity, especially in a reli- 
gious sense, and come to the knowledge of Him, whom to 
know is eternal life. I may here observe that my father and 
mother were married with the consent and approbation of 
their parents, and that their conduct in this respect was highly 
commendable, and should be an example to young persons 
of both sexes. I was born January 7th, 1722, so that, ad- 
mitting the alteration of the style, I now (1794) begin to 
enter the 72nd year of my age, which, we know, is beyond 

* On the mother's side, from the Baylys of Mydrim, who were de- 
scendants of Dr. Bayly, Bishop of Bangor in 1616. In the year 1457 
Thomas Bayly, of Deptford, esq. died, intestate, leaving large possessions. 
Notice was given in the usual way, by the Deputy Remembrancer of the 
Court of Exchequer, to the next of kin, and my grandfather traced his 
lineal descent, and made out a distinct claim ; but the application came too 
late, and the property was lost. These interesting documents, howeve^ 
which are very curious, as shewing how rapidly families intermingle, are still 
preserved. — Editor. 



APPENDIX. cl 



IX 



the general period allotted to the children of men in this 
world. My days are fulfilled ; " He that hath ears to hear 
let him hear;" eternity is at hand ; " the judge standeth be- 
fore the door." 

My mother had a taste for religion, and sometimes at- 
tended the ministry of that useful, laborious, and studious 
minister of Christ, Mr. Griffith Jones, of Llanddowror. 
When I was five or six years old, she would carry me on 
horseback behind her, to hear that gospel minister: and 
although she had two children besides me, a daughter and 
a son, and an early education was given to us all, and each 
of us learned to read and write, yet I was my mother's 
favourite, because I took most delight, as she observed, to 
remember and repeat remarkable passages of Scripture ; 
such as that of the children who mocked the prophet, and 
were destroyed by a wild bear ; or the man who was stoned 
to death for breaking the sabbath ; Joseph sold by his 
brethren, but at last exalted to honour in Egypt. She 
took particular care of the bringing me up, as Rebecca did 
of Jacob. I heard some wicked boys swear; and I, it 
seems, imitated their filthy language, as nearly as I could 
mutter it out; my mother heard me, called me to account, 
and gave me the smartest whipping I ever had in my life. 
The consequence was, I never attempted to swear again. 

My parents would consult together sometimes at leisure 
hours, how they should settle the children; the boys, they 
said, must be put to some trade, or take up some business 
or profession ; but my mother would insist on my being a 
minister of the gospel, that they might thus dedicate me to 
God, like Samuel (1 Sam. xvi. 12.) or David; for she would 
have it, that her son resembled the son of Jesse, who was 
intended for great achievements. Indeed, she would fain 
forebode that I should be a preacher at some time or other, 
and mo^re particularly after I had dreamed a remarkable 
dream, which I hasten to relate, with the interpretation. 
It came to pass, as follows : There was a stool on which my 
mother usually sat when she was a nurse, and we children 



clx APPF.VDTX. 

continued to call it 'mother's stool.' However, one night, 
when I was perhaps about seven or eight years old, I 
dreamed, and I will not say the visions of my head troubled 
me, but rather delighted me. I saw in my dream, and be- 
hold some visitors came into the house ; I wanted to enquire 
who they were and what they came for ; or at least, I thought 
in my dream, that I knew two, of whom I had read lately, 
and they appeared lovely to behold, and I thought I was 
delighted with the sight of them. They came forward, as I 
thought, and approached the fire-place, and sat down close 
together on mother's stool, and I was me seemed much 
pleased with their company. And when I awoke in the 
morning, I related my dream to my mother, and she told 
it to my father, " pondering in her heart what all this could 
mean." But my father passed it by, saying, Dreams are not 
to be minded. However, my mother interpreted the dream 
in my hearing, for they thought I did not understand what 
they said, because they talked in Welsh ; yet I knew the 
purport of the matter, and never forgot it. " I shall die 
soon," said she, "but Christ will supply my place, he will 
take care of the child, and give him a seat in his house as 
he did the apostle Peter." 

In the space of twelvemonths my mother died, I suppose 
of a fever ; and in the year following my father died also, 
and left three fatherless children ; when I was about twelve 
years of age, my brother ten, and my sister fourteen, my 
uncle on my mother's side took me ; and my uncle on my 
father's side took my brother. A few years after this, my 
sister had a call to Bristol to a gentlewoman from Lang- 
harne, who had settled in that city ; and there my sister 
lived many years, and died about thirty years ago (in 1764) ; 
my brother was put to school, became a good arithme- 
tician, and afterwards lived at Broadway, near Laugharne, 
and from that place he removed to Bristol, where he still 
resides. His name is David ; I wish he may learn, old as 
he is, to tune some strings on David's harp, then should 
we rejoice and sing together when our work is ended. 



APPENDIX. Clxi 

As for me, I followed farming work with my uncle, as I 
did with my father, when necessary ; at seed time and har- 
vest time especially, and at other times went to school, which 
was my chief delight : I would steal a few minutes to read, 
almost every time I sat down to eat ; and when at school, 
I would often prefer reading to playing ; and when I at- 
tained to some proficiency in classic authors, namely, 
Latin and Greek, a play day would be my ply day. 

When I arrived at the age of sixteen or seventeen, I was 
often solicited by my uncle to choose some trade or line 
of business ; but I could not fix upon anything, nay, though 
I tried, yet it was with reluctance, for I felt my heart in- 
clined to the ministry ; but feared it was too expensive for 
me to attain a degree of knowledge, suitable to that honour- 
able function. Yet all the while my Heavenly Father was 
mindful of me, although I knew him not. He preserved me 
in my youthful days and my years of folly from committing 
presumptuous sins, or being guilty of anything scandalous 
in the eyes of men, although as it was said of young Samuel, 
that he knew not the Lord, so I was ignorant of the true 
God ; yet He was graciously pleased to implant his holy 
fear in my heart, and to keep my conscience awake in the 
midst of a sleepy, careless, and sinful world. 

I frequently communed with my own heart; I was con- 
scious of its impurity, and felt the truth that David declares, 
where he saith, "my heart shevveth me the wickedness of 
the ungodly:" I was affected with this consideration, espe- 
cially when musing and meditating on the state of the dead. 
The grand question with me was, " How shall I appear be- 
fore God? How can I expect to be acquitted in the awful pre- 
sence of that just Judge, from whom and at whose appear- 
ance, heaven and earth, even all the elementary world shall 
flee away, vanish, and be no more V I generally solaced my- 
self and hushed my trembling soul, with the vain reply, I am 
not a greater sinner than all that ever died ; I know many, 
and doubtless there are thousands more, sinners like my- 

m 



C'lxii APPENDIX. 

self, that died in hope of a resurrection to eternal life, and 
why should I despair? But when God by his blessed spirit 
working in me through the gospel of Christ ; removed the 
veil from the eyes of my understanding, I plainly perceived 
that all my plea and all my hope were in the language of 
the poet, u like the baseless fabric of a vision," or in plain 
Scripture words, " like a house built upon the sand with- 
out any solid foundation." 

But this conviction by the light of the gospel of Christ 
I did not receive till some time after, nor was there a friend, 
" an interpreter, one of a thousand, to shew unto a man his 
uprightness;" and if I had declared the perplexity of my 
mind, probably they would have thought me mad, for 
there was no knowledge of God in the land. Nevertheless, 
my gracious God did not utterly forsake me, but continued 
to draw my attention to Him by frequent calls from heaven, 
by the voice of his holy angel ; not once, but several times, 
when I was alone, walking or going on an errand, did I 
hear a voice calling, Peter ! It was a voice superior to any 
human voice ; as different and distinguishable as the voice of 
thunder from the sound of a trumpet; yet it was not 
terrible, but comfortable ; and it put me in mind of what I 
heard from my mother and had read in the Bible — that the 
angels of God encamp round about them that fear Him. 
Whence it appears, that the Almighty God and Saviour 
hath appointed guardian angels to attend and protect the 
children of God and the heirs of the kingdom of Heaven. 

When I arrived at the eighteenth year of my age, I was 
entered, according to my desire, into the free school of 
Carmarthen, which I attended with great assiduity for the 
space of three years ; during which time I obtained the 
notice and approbation of my tutor, the Reverend Thomas 
Eynon, to whom, afterwards, I wrote a letter of thanks in 
Latin, and that letter, as I had reason to suppose, facili- 
tated my entrance into holy orders ; for I must inform my 
readers, that I was then, through a miracle of grace, become 
another man ; I was then a new creature. 



appendix. clxiii 

This was brought about by the instrumentality of that 
great man of God, the Reverend George Whitefield. He 
came providentially to Carmarthen a few months before 
my departure, and it was given out that he would preach 
in Lammas Street on the conduit, such a day at eleven 
o'clock; my tutor was informed of his coming, and thought 
proper to warn his pupils, especially those of the first class, 
against going to hear him, lest they should be infected with 
methodism. And when the time came, and the hour was 
up, namely, eleven o'clock, the scholars were dismissed, 
except the first class, who were summoned to attend ex- 
hortation, for it was customary with Mr. Eynon to give a 
short exhortation to the intended candidates, preparatory to 
their ordination, and we attended accordingly. The tutor 
proceeded to give instructions what authors to read, and 
what plan to pursue in studying divinity, &c. But the 
chief charge then was, to beware of the stranger that was to 
preach that day, " for," said he, " I am told he preaches 
original sin, that man must be born again, and that we 
must be justified before God, by faith, without works." 
However, three of my companions and myself agreed to go 
secretly to hear the preacher, which we well might among 
such a numerous crowd. We placed ourselves amongst 
the multitude, determined to hear and judge for ourselves; 
and I think I may say, I stood and hearkened with as much 
attention, as any of them all ; for God had prepared my 
heart, by frequent warnings given me, and some partial 
imperfect convictions which I had often felt under sermons, 
and that with vows and resolutions of immediate and un- 
reserved reformation, which were as often broken as made. 
Nevertheless, as fallow ground, broken up and turned over 
and over, renders the wild soil tractable and fruitful at 
last ; so was my stubborn heart made obedient in the day 
of his power, and rendered susceptible of the immortal seed 
of the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. 

Mr. Whitefield 's text was that notable passage in the 
prophet Isaiah, " Thy Maker is thy husband." He ob- 



clxiv APPENDIX. 

served the relationship between God and his people, in 
Christ Jesus. He showed the ground and nature of the 
marriage, and the happiness of the bride. God became 
man : there is the ground, as touching the nature or man- 
ner: love is the bandage that binds the soul to God for 
ever and ever. He invited all to partake of that happiness, 
namely, to be espoused to Christ, whose glorious excel- 
lencies he most emphatically described and proclaimed. 
" Would any one have a wise husband, behold Christ is 
wisdom itself; or a rich husband, and such we all need to 
pay our debts ; all that the eternal Father hath is his. As 
Abraham's servant said, in commendation of his master 
Isaac, ' Unto him hath he given all that he hath.' Humble 
and kind, none like Him : beautiful and comely, surpassing 
the children of men. Are any in debt? He is willing and 
ready to discharge the utmost farthing without a frown. 
Alas ! my poor fellow-sinners, we are all debtors to the law 
of God, for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of 
God. We are in danger every moment of being arrested 
by Divine Justice, and cut down by the irresistible axe cf 
the king of terrors, and cast into hell. No wonder that 
Felix trembled at the hearing of righteousness, temperance, 
and judgment to come. Wilt thou go with the man ? 
Will ye embrace the free salvation ? cast away your idols, 
return to your first husband, be espoused to Christ, believe 
in him, and live for ever, beyond the reach of Sinai's thun- 
der, safe from the fear of death and judgment. Receive 
the glory, let him come into your hearts, accept the golden 
ring, the token of endless love. Resign yourselves to the 
mighty Saviour, he is ready to receive all that come unto 
him. Oh, give your hearty consent to the agreement; call 
the spirit to witness ; write with your hand, I am the Lord's. 
1 Surname yourselves by the name of Jacob.' Then, and 
not till then, you may live and die in hope of eternal hap- 
piness with Christ in heaven. Yet some men entertain such 
a high conceit, of their own virtue and goodness, that in 
open contempt of law and gospel, they are ready on every 



APPENDIX. clxv 

accusation to plead, not guilty. If such was every man's 
plea, then Christ died in vain, which is the greatest ab- 
surdity to suppose ; for that would amount to an impeach- 
ment of Divine Wisdom and Justice. The truth is, Christ 
is our life. There is no life but in him, and through him. 
It is vain and presumptuous, therefore, for any man to say, 
' I do no harm,' for he should say rather if he knew his 
own heart intimately, ' I do no good.' For, as St. Paul 
says, ' In me, that is, in my flesh, dwelleth no good thing;' 
for if the best of us all were to be called to judgment, and 
dealt with according to his deserts, moral or religious, we 
should all of us be condemned to hell for ever." 

Thus the preacher went on, and I was wounded, but not 
overturned, or thrown prostrate at the foot of the cross. I 
felt the point of his two-edged sword, but I was not cast 
down to the ground ; at length, he exclaimed vehemently, 
" My dear friends, I have been for some years, as diligent 
as any of you; I prayed seven times a day, I fasted twice 
a week, went to church every day, received the sacrament 
every sabbath, and all this while I was no Christian." 
That sentence, uttered with emphatic energy, smote me so 
powerfully, that my whole frame tottered, and I was no 
longer like myself, than the clay marred under the potter's 
hand resembled the intended vessel until it was formed 
anew.* I instantly felt a desire, that the eloquent preacher 
would condescend to tell me, what it was then to be a real 
Christian, since all his endeavours and incessant labours 
availed him nothing; and no sooner was the thought 
formed in my heart, than the sacred teacher began to ex- 
pound the mysterious doctrine. " Now," said he, " per- 
haps some of you are ready to ask me, what is it, then, to 
be a Christian?" ' Yes,' my heart replied, ' I am the man 
who wishes to obtain that important information.' " In a 
word," said he, " it is to receive the Spirit of Christ; for if 
any man hath not the Spirit of Christ, be is none of his. 

* Jer. xviii. 4. 



dxVI APPENDIX. 

You must feel your misery by nature; you must know and 
feel the want of a Saviour. You must believe that the man 
Christ Jesus is the son of God ; that Jesus Christ came 
into the world to save sinners, and that he is able to perform 
the work that he came into the world to do. To save 
from sin, from the dominion of sin, from the guilt of sin, 
and from the pollution of sin. It is to know his voice, to 
take up his cross and to follow him ; to be one with him, 
bone of his bone, and flesh of his flesh ; to abide in him, 
and for him to abide in you, to be his temple, to converse 
with him, to know his will, and live to his glory." * Alas,' 
said my soul, l I am no Christian then, in this sense of the 
word ; I have gone to church indeed, I have said my prayers, 
made the responses in a formal manner, joined in singing, &c. 
but I was never at sacrament, nor did I understand what it 
meant, and much less did I know of the Holy Ghost, the 
Spirit of Christ dwelling in me ; alas, I have deceived my- 
self ! I thought I was something, but I now find I am no- 
thing.' The divine preacher again proceeded, " Precious 
souls, you may think I bring strange things to your hearing ; 
I acknowledge, it is not long ago, when such doctrine as 
this appeared strange to me myself. I saw a book en- 
titled, ' The Life of God in the Soul of Man/ I wondered 
what the author meant ; but, upon further reflection, and 
after studying and examining the subject, I was convinced 
that the author was right, and that I was wrong ; that he 
was more perfectly instructed in the doctrine of Christ 
Jesus, than I was. However, the Spirit of truth can teach 
us all to follow the Lord." 

My companions heard with great attention, and ap- 
plauded the preacher; but they knew nothing of the new 
building that was erected in my heart, I mean the new 
creature that was formed within me, and that in the space 
of that important hour. It seems there is an appointed 
time for all things ! I had felt frequent convictions, as I 
mentioned before, and had made frequent resolutions to 
cast away my idols, to relinquish carnal pleasures, and lead 



APPENDIX. clxvii 

a new life ; but I neglected to pay my vows unto the Lord, 
and forgot my guardian angel. Yet the day-spring from 
on high visited me. The time of my conversion was accom- 
plished, all my sins in thought, word, and deed, were 
brought to my remembrance, as though a flood-gate had 
been opened, and the angry flood poured out furiously upon 
me ; so that my soul was overwhelmed with fear and con- 
fusion. Every thing around me appeared strange and un- 
couth, nay, the neatest building was no more to me than 
as a nauseous dunghill; I had no more any delight in 
heathen authors ; I went to school, but could not collect 
my thoughts to study my lesson. I endeavoured to conceal 
my complaint as much as possible; but my tutor perceived 
I had been affected by the sermon, which he had forbidden 
me to hear, yet he never spoke a word to me. It afforded some 
relief, however, to think that in a little while I should be at 
liberty to seek new companions that knew something of 
God. My former companions forsook me, my intimate 
friends would not know me; they would turn aside in the 
street to avoid me ; my acquaintance were disappointed in 
me, expecting to find me an excellent scholar and a sociable 
minister; they were sorry to hear, they said, that I was 
turned a fool ; thaj; is, I had espoused the cause of ine- 
thodism. It is well known, that all who could not be con- 
tented with the " form of godliness without the power" were 
then called methodists. However, I think they had no more 
reason to be angry with me, than the Jews had to persecute 
Paul for obeying the voice from heaven. Nevertheless, 
lover and friend were put far from me ; so that I had not 
one in the world, that I knew, who would sympathize with 
me, in my distress, except a young woman belonging to the 
family where I lodged, who was converted, I hope, effec- 
tually under the same sermon. I admire the wisdom of 
God in all the gracious dispensations of his providence. I 
had consented to join with one or two jovial young men to 
pay a musician, for the season, as they used to say, that is 
at Easter, Whitsuntide, &c. and during the time of vacation 



ClXVllI APPENDIX. 

from school, when we intended to divert and amuse our- 
selves with dancing, &c. But at the very point of time, 
just before Easter, I was converted to Christ ; so the scheme 
formed to please the flesh was entirely disconcerted. 

I quitted school in the twenty-first year of my age, and 
commenced schoolmaster myself for one year, at least, at 
Cynwyl Elfed : what my usefulness was there many can 
testify, especially the Rev. John Thomas, now in Cardigan- 
shire, near Lechryd ; I had the prize of the high calling of 
God always in my mind. I mean not only the privilege of 
being a disciple of Christ, but the honour of being a minis- 
ter of Christ. I confess, that since I began to study divinity, 
I had the ambition to hope, that before I departed out of 
the world, I should be able to let the world know that I had 
been in the world. I do not mean by ostentation, like Ab- 
salom's pillar, but from a principle of universal love, and a 
real desire to be instrumental in the salvation of sinners, 
and a worker together with God, to encourage and direct 
sincere souls to secure their interest in the kingdom of our 
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, as did the Apostle Peter, 
(2 Peter i. 13.) But being young, and without assistance, 
I knew not what I was to do, until Providence opened the 
door, as I intend to mention in its proper place. 

When the time drew near, I prepared myself, and applied 
for ordination, and obtained a real title, at Eglwys Gym- 
mun. I obtained all the necessary and proper credentials, 
and although I was suspected of being a methodist, yet I 
was admitted into orders ; for my tutor, to whom I wrote 
the Latin letter before mentioned, did not say a word against 
me; but, as I was informed, recommended me to the bishop. 
I then hastened to my parish: my patron, the vicar, had either 
some preferment or a good curacy in England, and he came 
home generally only once a year, in order to receive his 
tithe. The care of the parish therefore devolved upon me ; 
my salary was small, but I kept a school, and at the year's 
end, I had sufficient to buy a suit of clothes, and to pur- 
chase a horse, which was a happy circumstance for me, as 



APPENDIX. clxix 

will appear. I was well respected for a long time. I went 
out with the young ladies a coursing sometimes, which I 
did more from complaisance than inclination to the sport. 
In that year the Pretender came to Scotland, and there 
were great apprehensions of his coming to London, which 
made many who never prayed before, bend their knees to 
God. I exhorted my parishioners to meet weekly, particu- 
larly those who could do so conveniently, in three or four 
houses, alternately ; and I met such as came together in one 
place or other every night, and exhorted them and prayed 
with them. Some thought me " righteous over much," 
and that my way of proceeding savoured of methodism. 
Flesh and spirit, we know, never agree, but oppose each 
other. When a parishioner died, I would not suffer the 
neighbours to play ridiculous tricks in wakes, as was cus- 
tomary in the days of popish ignorance ; but enjoined 
them to read and pray and sing proper psalms on the oc- 
casion. 

One Sunday, in church, when I was delivering my ser- 
mon, which I then generally wrote in full, I glanced my 
eye on the congregation, and saw a young man and a 
young woman playing, and pushing each other ; and all the 
bustle, as I perceived, was occasioned by a posey, that one 
endeavoured to arrest from the hands of the other. I stopped 
and paused a little, thinking they would take shame ; but 
as they did not desist immediately, but on the coutrary I 
saw others ready to catch the laugh ; I laid my sermon 
aside, put my hands upon it, addressed myself to the rude 
offenders, and desired them to consider where they were, 
and what they came thither for; I told them that God would 
not take it kind at their hand, to behave in a place of wor- 
ship in a manner that would be considered as highly im- 
proper and unbecoming even in a playhouse. When I 
had given vent to my passionate zeal, I recollected myself, 
and began to think of my sermon ; but I was too much con- 
fused to fix immediately on the precise passage at which I 
had discontinued my discourse ; I found myself obliged 



clxx APPENDIX. 

either to speak extempore, or to conclude with shame, and to 
beg pardon ; I therefore resolved to speak as God would 
enable me, and went through tolerably well, although what 
was spoken last had no particular reference to what had 
been delivered before ; and when I came out I heard a 
whispering or murmur, and the vicar's lady in the midst, 
"I suspected he was a methodist before," said she, "and to- 
day he has thrown off the mask." She immediately wrote 
to her husband, and made out a complaint of a most serious 
and dark complexion against me. As the result, I was dis- 
missed without having the opportunity of defending myself ; 
though surely, every supposed offender ought to have the 
privilege of being put on his defence. But I was not per- 
mitted to do so in this instance. My patron, it is true, 
wrote me a letter, containing the several articles of com- 
plaint, which were the following, "Peter Williams, curate of 
Eglwys Gymmun, stands charged with preaching original 
sin, justification by faith, and the absolute necessity of re- 
generation. " I replied, " Sir, I am young ; perhaps I may 
mistake; I declare, I ahvays thought these articles of faith 
were the fundamental doctrines of the church of England. 
Please to let me have your thoughts on these subjects, as I 
will follow your instructions as far as I can with a clear 
conscience." I had no answer. The vicar came down 
about August, and officiated two or three sabbath days, till 
my year was up; I begged leave to preach in his hearing, 
and that he should then judge, whether I was worthy to 
be continued as his curate or not. He said, he believed I 
was a methodist, and he w r ould have no more to do with me. 
I pleaded my license. He said, " You must give it up, or I 
will exhibit articles against you in the bishop's court." I 
then went and waited on the bishop ; his lordship, Lord 
Treverthen, said, " I have heard your character ; you have 
preached at Llanllean and Chapel Evan/' — " Both are con- 
secrated places, my lord." — " If you behave well for three 
years, I will give you full ordination." I said, how shall I 
subsist, my lord ; 1 cannot dig, I am ashamed to beg. 



APPENDIX. clxxi 

"Live as you can/' said he; "your humble servant/' I 
went out of the palace without the offer of meat or drink. 

Mr. Griffith Jones, of Llandowvor, told me he had heard 
there was a curate wanted at Swansea. I resolved to go 
to that place. I had by that time a horse to carry me, for 
I had reserved money at Eglwys Cymmun to purchase a 
horse, as I mentioned before, and horses then sold cheap. 
Providence still favoured me, and to all appearance ap- 
pointed me to be an itinerant preacher. I saw the promise 
in a great measure fulfilled "according to the day, so shall 
thy strength be.'' I had a friend near Llanllean Chapel, 
who kept my horse gratis for a month ; he was a gentleman 
farmer, whose daughter, three years afterwards, became my 
wife. 

On my arrival at Swansea I was kindly received. The 
vicar was gone from home ; I was very soon called upon 
to do duty. I served two churches, one in Welsh, in the 
Upper Town, and the other in English, in the Lower Town. 
I was requested to attend a christening, at a particular 
house; and I considered myself bound in conscience, to 
behave as becometh the minister of Christ ; and not to 
divert or entertain the company with vain discourse, as is 
often the case on such occasions, but to follow St. Paul's 
advice, u Let no corrupt communication proceed out of 
your mouth, but such as is good for the work of edifying, 
that it may administer grace to the hearers." Whereat 
several of the company were displeased, yet some others 
acknowledged, that Christianity without the Spirit of 
Christ was like a body without a soul; and forasmuch as 
we had professedly joined in prayer, that the child then 
baptized might be regenerated by the Holy Ghost, it was 
extremely proper to enquire, whether we ourselves knew 
indeed what w r as meant by regeneration. 

We know it is customary for the mayor or portrieve, to 
go to church on a set day, after he is elected ; attended by 
the aldermen in that year, and the day happened to be soon 
after mv arrival at Swansea. I read the service, and as 



clxxii APPENDIX. 

soon as it was over, the gentry arose to go out ; but I 
beckoned to the clerk, to give out a psalm, which I had 
before appointed, and instantly quitted the desk, and went 
into the pulpit, which, when the gentlemen perceived, they 
sat down and gave proper attention. I proceeded, as I 
thought, in very regular order to save my credit ; I used a 
short form of prayer, and had the heads of my sermon 
written down. My text was, 2 Chron. xix. 6, 7. " Ye 
judge not for man, but for the Lord :" and I pressed the 
matter home, and told the mayor, &c. that if they did not 
discharge their duty conscientiously, according to the law 
of God, the sins of all the dissolute inhabitants of the town, 
under their jurisdiction, would abide at their door. They 
had nothing to object ; yet, as I was told, they did not ap- 
prove of my preaching ; they said, that I was too zealous, 
and spoke too loud, and that it was their opinion, I should 
not continue long there. However, they did not invite me 
to dinner, so everything seemed to confirm what I often 
thought, that I was called to be an itinerant preacher. 
Yet I was attached to the church, and resolved to abide in 
it as long as I could. I staid there a month, at the expira- 
tion of which time, when I had finished my duties at the 
upper church, I came as usual to the other, exactly at 
eleven o'clock, and the bell tolling, I stepped in, and looking 
towards the reading desk and pulpit, I saw that the desk 
was already occupied. I cried, treachery, not audibly, but 
mentally ; I however walked up to him, and asked him, 
" Sir, are you to perform duty here to day ? " " Yes," said 
he, with a stern look. " Very well," said I ; "if you 
please, I will read the service." " No," said he ; "I will 
read myself;" and he went on; and I sat down, and remained 
till the conclusion of all ; but I did not stay to salute my 
brother clergyman, for I was too full, I went to my em- 
ployers and asked the reason. " The parishioners do not 
like you," said they. i( Come to-morrow, and you shall be 
paid." There were several friends, lovers of religion, and 
some preachers, in the town and neighbourhood, with whom 



APPENDIX. cl 



XX11I 



I conversed before and since my dismissal. My preaching 
was blessed to them, to strengthen their hands in the work 
of the Lord, and to establish their faith in Jesus Christ. 

Soon afterwards I departed from that place, and came to 
Carmarthen, and there I was informed of the want of a 
curate at Llan Granog and Llan Dyssilio in Cardiganshire. 
I hastened thither, and enquired for the person concerned, 
a feeble old gentleman, who had engaged a curate for his 
son, a non-resident clergyman, then living in England. I 
agreed for a quarter of a year. The curate who was there 
at the time refusing to serve any longer for the same salary. 
Soon afterwards, I commenced serving the curacy, and 
continued to officiate unmolested, for the space of two 
months, and was highly approved of and commended; but 
the old curate, who only wanted an advance, (as it appeared 
afterwards), came and applied for the curacy again. He 
was to resume his office, as soon as my engagement expired. 
I had gained the affections of the parishioners in general ; 
and there was only one old gentleman from near Llangranog, 
who was my opponent, and who wanted to thrust me out, 
and put the other in immediately. About the end of two 
months, after I had been at Llan Dysilio, in the morning 
I came to Llan Granog, and found the door was shut, not 
against me, but against the curate who wanted to supplant 
me. However, when I came, the supplanter and myself 
were left by the parishioners to try the issue ; we rushed in, 
with the crowd at our heels, he collared me, and I collared 
him, for I was young then, though I am old now, and I 
gained the pulpit, and had much ado to pacify the people. 
I demanded peace and silence in the name of the king, and 
it was obtained presently, and I preached powerfully ; but 
never wrestled for the pulpit, or reading desk again in all 
my life ; but resolved to follow the leading of Providence, 
and preach the Gospel any where, whether in or out, in 
a field, or on a dunghill, if I could by any means win souls 
to Christ, to partake of his great salvation. Considering 
that he raiseth the poor out of the dust, and lifteth the 



clxxiv appendix; 

needy out of the dunghill, that he may set him with princes, 
even with the princes of his people. (Psalm cxiii. 7, 8.) 
This remarkable passage of Holy Writ, if I had then re- 
membered, I should have declined that shameful contest, 
that unmanly wrestling for the momentary enjoyment of a 
tottering desk. Whatever my antagonist gained, or how- 
ever his salary was advanced, I received no payment. I 
applied for what was due to me, it is true ; but the feeble 
old gentleman told me, in strong terms, " It is reported 
that you are a methodist, and I have resolved not to pay 
you any salary at all." 

Soon after this, I heard of an eminent exhorter* in some 
part of Pembrokeshire. I went to hear him, and to con- 
verse with him. I found him holding forth in a moun- 
tainous place, not far from Hays Castle; I was delighted 
with his discourse, and when he concluded, I burst out in 
prayer, which surprized the congregation, for nobody knew 
me, except one that came with me as a guide. However, 
the spirit of faith and love, that breathed in the prayer, 
knit their hearts to mine, in such an effectual manner, that, 
as they themselves declared, they considered it as a voice 
from heaven, calling sinners home, a circumstance which 
they never forgot. The preacher or exhorter, as he in hu- 
mility counted himself, took meVcft]* b.im and brought me 
to an association of the methodist preachers, on the borders 
of Pembrokeshire. He recommended me to their notice ; 
I obtained a name amongst them, and with them continued 
to associate from the twenty-fourth year of my age, until 
I was seventy and upwards. Soon after my connection 
with the methodists, I ranged gradually all the country 
over, studiously observing the hand of Providence, as the 
Israelites watched the direction of the pillar, that marked 
their encampments in the wilderness. I learned the con- 
tents of that useful lesson, Jer. x. 23, by frequent expe- 
rience, " It is not in man that walketh to direct his steps." 

* Probably Mr. Howel Danes.— Ed. 









APPENDIX. clxXV 

And I endeavoured to realise what St. Paul informs us he 
had learned ; " in whatsoever state I am therewith to be 
content." (Phil. iv. 11.) 

I went to Aborgorlech Chapel. Mr. Daniel Rowlands 
was to preach there ; he, however, put me in the pulpit, 
and I was enabled to preach in a manner, I hope, accept- 
able to God, and approved of men, (Ro?n. xiv. 18.) for the 
Lord set his seal to my ministry, and some were added to 
the church of Christ, particularly one Hesther, of Glan 
Rhyd near Brechfa, who commenced that day to be a dis- 
ciple of Christ, and so continued to the end. (John viii. 31. 
Mat. xxiv. 13.) I then went to Langeitho and preached 
there. At this time I knew but little about the distinction 
between Arminianism, Baxterianism, Moravianism, &c. yet, 
as we say, the will was accepted for the deed ; and I found 
by experience, that to speak of Christ crucified for sinners 
was enough for souls that hungered for righteousness ; be- 
cause such were feasted every day on the dainty dishes of 
peace and love. 

Peace with God, and sins forgiven, 
Beloved in Christ, and born for heaven. 

From Llangeitho, I was directed to Llanidloes ; for, as 
they told me, there was one man at Llanidloes that loved 
the Lord Jesus Christ, and would be glad to receive a 
gospel preacher at his house. His name was Evan Morgan, 
a shoemaker in the North-street. I went and found the 
road to Llanidloes ; but the day was cloudy, and when I 
entered the town, I did not understand whether I was 
going north or east. However, providentially, I was right, 
though I knew it not. I rode gently and looked anxiously, 
but could not identify the shoemaker's shop, though I saw 
one, because I imagined the situation did not answer the 
description given me; and I turned back as gently, and, 
indeed, as anxiously as I went, because I knew that people 
were prejudiced against itinerant preachers, and would be 
glad and embrace any opportunity of giving wrong direc- 



clxXVi APPENDIX. 

tions to such travellers. It was well for me, the man I 
sought saw me, and suspected I was one of the despised 
tribe — one of the troublers of Israel that turned the world 
upside down. Therefore he watched and observed which 
way I turned; and he went out to his back yard to see 
what was become of the stranger. In the mean time I had 
called at another shoemaker's house, and enquired for Evan 
Morgan. He answered slyly, " Some call me by that name; 
what do you want with him?" I was embarrassed in my 
mind, and knew not what to say, for I had discovered my 
mistake ; but that instant the person I wanted appeared, 
and exclained, " Do you enquire for Evan Morgan." The 
other swore, and, with a confused look, said, " There he is 
now." I turned round, and was accosted by my friend, and 
kindly received, but saw no more of the other who so 
treacherously attempted to personate Evan Morgan, and 
thus to deceive me. This I consider as a remarkable in- 
stance of Providence; for that perfidious man would have 
drawn me into a snare, and then if he had found me friend- 
less, would have led me into difficulties, would have given 
me a bad name, a cradoc, a pest, a disturber of the common- 
wealth, and what not; and then he would have raised a 
mob, and bespattered me with eggs, dirt, &c, a treatment 
which I often afterwards experienced ; and on these occa- 
sions I have been very glad to be permitted at night to 
sleep with whole bones. What a thick veil of ignorance 
still covers the human race even in these enlightened days, 
as they are called. So great is their aversion to the salva- 
tion of their own souls that they will not open their hearts 
to the Saviour when he knocks at their doors. What 
wonders of redeeming grace will appear when such rebel- 
lious sinners find themselves in the arms of mercy, safely 
conveyed to glory, and their seats prepared at the right 
hand of the Saviour ! 

I pursued my journey, and went through Newtown, not 
without dropping a sermon here and there, where I found 
admittance; and sometimes had a friend to bear me com- 



APPENDIX. clxxvii 

pany from one place to another. I called at Newtown, 
intending to feed my horse, but before I alighted it was 
whispered I was a cradoc. By what mark they distinguished 
me from any other man I know not; but they began to be 
noisy, and threw stones until the fire sparkled on the pave- 
ment. I rode off towards Llan Fair Gaereinion, which 
place, though I never had been there, I understood was 
not far off: I knew a gentleman in that neighbourhood 
with whom I became acquainted at Llan Drindod Wells. 
I found his house ; and, after a comfortable night's lodging, 
I was called to preach at his house the next day. Thus 
I enjoyed a little sunshine in the midst of stormy weather, 
as soldiers receive some refreshment after a tedious march. 
But the soldiers of Christ have one privilege above all other 
soldiers on land or sea — they are sure of conquest at last, 
and of arriving safe home to reap the fruit of their labour. 
My next resting place was at Bala. I was informed 
that in that little town there were more than two or three 
who espoused the cause of the gospel, and all of them men 
of property; one a Scotchman born, married, and settled. 
And forasmuch as he was a son of peace, I went in and 
abode there, as Cornelius did. (Acts x. 24.) Notice was 
given to a few friends and kindred of my being there ; how- 
ever more came than were invited, and I preached with 
my bands on, hoping it would procure respect, by being a 
badge of my profession. Some of those who came together 
heard with attention, and others were clamorous and noisy, 
like the Athenians : (Acts xvii. 20.) they wanted to know 
my business there, and what these strange things meant. 
I kept the eyes of my mind, and turned my thoughts and 
contemplation for a text more on the common prayer, than 
on the sacred scripture ; for I knew the words of holy writ 
were strange to most of my hearers. I then reminded them 
of their weekly confession — " We have erred and strayed 
from thy ways like lost sheep," &c. and of their professedly 
earnest prayer — " Lord have mercy upon us, and incline 

n 



clxxviii APPENDIX. 

our hearts to keep this law." I observed the propriety and 
shewed the necessity of considering, and personally apply- 
ing these things to their hearts. Sume approved of the ex- 
hortation, and others treated the whole with scorn. Some 
of the mob were very mischievous ; they threw a stone of 
perhaps three pounds weight into my chamber, when I was 
going to bed, but it did not touch me. " Nothing shall 
hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain." (Isaiah xi. 9.) 

From Bala I went to Lleyn, a district in Carnarvonshire; 
having heard that there were a few there who received the 
gospel. I preached as usual to numerous congregations, 
for the novelty of preaching in the open air, and that by a 
clergyman, brought many together, and amongst others a 
gentlewoman of property was effectually converted, and 
acknowledged me as her spiritual father as long as she 
lived. 

I next went to Anglesea, having received intelligence of 
a preacher, William Prichard, Plas Penmynydd, removed 
from Carnarvonshire to that county, whom I found after 
having made some inquiry respecting him. He gave me a 
dismal account of the bitter prejudices entertained there 
against itinerant preachers and their adherents. And he 
informed me that one had held forth on a common adjoining 
a high road, where a turbulent congregation had assembled, 
and the multitude divided ; some would hear what " the bab- 
bler said," and others would mob him out of the county. A 
battle ensued, and blood was shed; till it carried the dust 
before it, as we sometimes see when a heavy shower of 
rain is poured from the clouds. However, I ventured to 
preach on the top of a hill ; and here and there, wherever 
I could get five or six to bear me company ; and people 
would flock together from all parts, crying one to another, 
" One of the Pennau Crynion is come to preach to us !" I 
began to speak as soon as possible, and would not wait for 
many to assemble ; for I found, by happy experience, that if 
I could gain the ears of my hearers, I should soon gain their 
hearts; and that they would seldom delight to persecute 



APPENDIX. Clxxix 

again. So there were some civilized from time to time; the 
poorer sort, and some of the middle rank, would offer me a 
lodging, and entertain me with such things as they had. 

In these journeyings, I providentially met a friend, who 
was second son to a gentleman of property, and who had 
been enlightened by the preaching of Mr. Howel Harris, 
and being at his own disposal, that is, independent, he be- 
came my companion, and travelled with me to many places; 
he was not daunted by persecution, but bore the cross with 
patience and resignation. He introduced me to the notice 
of friends whom I knew not, and led me to places where I 
was most likely to be peaceably admitted, and especially 
where the superstitious counted the ground holy, and per- 
secution ungodly and unbecoming, such as the ruins of old 
chapels. 

We were riding through a town, then hostile, but now 
friendly to the gospel, and had almost got out of it, through 
the midst of a rude rabble of mockers and scoffers, who 
endeavoured to frighten our horses, with bags of stones tied 
to the end of a pole, and well shaken so as to jingle; but 
there was little or no pelting with mud, &c. Near the end 
of the town, however, a shoemaker started from his stall, 
took up a large handful of dirt or mud from the street, it 
being in wet weather, and flung it in my face, till both my 
eyes were closed, and I was blinded as it were for a moment; 
for I could see no more than a blind man. However, I 
scraped it off as well as I could, and began to peep out, and 
soon found I could see my way as well as ever. Then I 
rejoiced and was glad, forasmuch as I was counted worthy 
to be persecuted for the sake of Christ and his gospel. 

I then went to Trefryw in Carnarvonshire ; but I did not 
preach there, for the mob would not permit me. It was 
given out rather too indiscreetly, that the Reverend Peter 
Williams was to preach there at such a time : it should 
have been said to pass through, and, if acceptable, would give 
them a sermon when church service was over. But the 
poor ignorant though zealous friends of religion, it seems, 



clxXX APPENDIX. 

imagined that preachers of the gospel had power to stop 
the mouths of lions ; I mean, to pacify our inveterate 
enemies, and demand, or rather command peace at their 
own option. At least, having tasted of the sweetness of the 
gospel themselves, they wished their neighbours to be par- 
takers of the same blessing. However, they never thought 
there was, in the hearts of those who call themselves 
Christians, so much inveterate enmity and malice against 
the doctrine of Christ, as to persecute those who preach 
forgiveness of sins in his name every where both to Jews and 
Gentiles. Indeed, the mob did not beat and abuse me as was 
expected. They were headed by two gentlemen, who, though 
they had drank freely, carried a little gentility about them, 
and in a great measure restrained the madness of the mob. 
They kept me immured in a public house, amidst scores of 
scoffers, from six in the evening till two in the morning, 
like Samson amongst the Philistines, to make sport for 
them. They would compel me to drink, they would ask me 
many questions concerning my education, my doctrine, and 
my followers, and what was my text that morning, " If you 
please to attend, gentlemen, I will relate the whole, the text 
and sermon also." Then one of the gentlemen would cry, 
" Silence : he is now going to preach, to your reformation." 
Then aha, aha, and a loud laugh ensued, and the same pranks 
were played over again and again. I called for victuals, and 
begged for a bed. They laughed, and some answered satiri- 
cally, You shall have victuals, and you shall have a bed pre- 
sently. I expected I was to be turned out and stoned to 
death in the dark, and there would be an end of me. Yet 
I resigned myself to God, and continued in mental prayer, 
for my hypocritical mockers {Job xvii. 2. and Ps. xxv. 16.) 
would not allow me to pray or preach in an audible manner. 
And indeed I was much grieved, because I was obliged to 
hear their vile swearing, and corrupt communication. How- 
ever, I had no reason to complain of hardship, for I had more 
favour shewn me than my Lord and Master, for I was re- 
leased before the cock crew. The gentlemen ordered the 



APPENDIX. clxxxi 

innkeeper to give me meat and drink, and they were so gene- 
rous as to pay the bill in full ; but they charged me not to 
preach in this village : they mounted their horses, and the 
mob filed off about half past two o'clock. My companion, 
who had left me in the confusion when we were surrounded 
by the mob, first met the man of the house, told him who 
and where he was. The innkeeper informed me privately, 
and said he would come in when the mob was dispersed. 
He told me, also, the horses and all the bags, and every- 
thing were safe ; and so it came to pass. 

We went to bed, and I slept about two or three hours; 
but my companion could not sleep : we got up, thanked God 
for our deliverance, and prepared for our journey. But 
one of the company, who had staid behind, came to me, and 
insisted on my preaching to him and some of the neigh- 
bours, who, he said, were desirous to hear ; he pretended to 
be a friend. He then demanded my letters of orders, which 
1 had shewn to the gentlemen in the course of the night. I 
dared not to refuse any thing that he asked ; I gave them to 
him, he gave me a stern look, refused to return them, and 
marched off. I and my companion mounted our horses 
without preaching, and went to another place, about seven 
miles distant, where I knew some friends, as I had been 
there before. We were then happy ; and counted our de- 
liverance as wonderful as Daniel's from the lion's den. 

When we had been there about two hours, a young 
woman on horseback came and enquired for such travellers 
at the door; she gave me to know that she was daughter to 
the man who had robbed me of my letters of orders that 
morning. It seems the man had boasted of his noble act 
as he thought it, and had been informed of the danger 
he was in if prosecuted by law, and therefore he sent with 
all speed, and desired me to take them back." 



Here the autobiography closes. The account of the re- 
maining part of my grandfather's life must therefore be 
imperfect. 



clxxxii APPENDIX. 

It may, however, be stated that he travelled considerably 
more than he has himself mentioned ; and that he laboured 
faithfully and diligently in his Master's vineyard. He was 
deterred by no inclemency of weather, and he deemed it an 
honour to suffer persecution in the cause of Christ. He 
possessed a robust frame of body and a resolute mind, and 
he was therefore the better enabled to endure labour and 
self-denial. He proved a blessing to thousands in the com- 
paratively benighted age in which he lived : his talents 
were of the highest order; they particularly qualified him 
for instilling truth and gospel light into the ignorant minds 
of his hearers. As a preacher, he was strikingly animated 
and energetic, and he won his way to the hearts of the people 
as much by the persuasiveness of his manner as by the force 
of his arguments and the beauty of his imagery ; the sum 
and substance of his addresses being the miserable state of 
man by nature, and his redemption through Christ. His 
Welsh Annotations on the Bible will be remembered and 
prized with grateful fondness by his countrymen while the 
language of Cambria exists. 

He had long expressed a wish that God would please to 
raise up some person who would evangelize his beloved coun- 
try ; but no one seemed to others more fitted for such a task 
than himself. 

At the period in which he lived, attempts were made to 
extirpate the Welsh language, by introducing English 
schools and English Bibles, to the systematic exclusion of 
the Welsh ; the consequence was, that the Christian pro- 
fession of the peasantry abated, and their morals became 
corrupted. This was a source of deep sorrow to my grand- 
father. For this reason he set about his Annotations with 
little or no assistance, and with still less encouragement ; 
his only motive being love to God and to the souls of men. 
Trusting in the Lord he went on with it courageously, 
and to the wonder and rejoicing of all, completed his task 
on the 22nd of May, 1770. This was the first Welsh Com- 
mentary that was ever published, and the first edition of the 



APPENDIX. cl 



XXX1U 



Scriptures ever printed in the Principality. It went through 
several editions. The first, reached 3600 copies ; the second, 
6400, in 1775; the third, 4000, in 1796. But before the 
last edition was completed, the author entered into his rest. 

In 1773, he published his Welsh Concordance, which 
was hailed as a great boon ; and at the present day it is 
esteemed a work of uncommon labour and utility. In 1790 
he edited, by subscription, 4000 copies of Cann's Bible, 
with additional marginal references and notes. Here, how- 
ever, an unpleasant tale must be told. His brethren, the 
Calvinistic method ists, had promised to patronize the work, 
and had given their names as subscribers towards defraying 
the expenses ; but just as it was proceeding from the press, 
they, in a body, withdrew their support, and left the whole 
burden of the publication to the editor, assigning as their 
reason, a change in the editor's sentiments as to the doctrine 
of the Trinity ; although such was by no means the fact. 
They left him to his own resources. Not contented with 
this, they shut their doors against him, and excluded him 
from their assemblies. By this cruel transaction he lost six 
or seven hundred pounds; and, what is more, it contributed 
to shorten his days, for it never ceased to oppress his 
spirits.* 

The following letter speaks for itself. 

" Gelli, Friday Evening, 
" MY DEAR BROTHER, August 5th, 1796. 

" From every appearance, the next Post will bring you an 
account of my poor father's dissolution. 

" On my arrival here yesterday fortnight, I was grieved 
to observe that he was visibly altered for the worse, upon 
which I immediately consulted Dr. Davis, the most eminent 
of the faculty in this country. He told me his apprehen- 
sions at once ; that he feared my father's constitution was 

* This melancholy circumstance called forth a beautiful letter of con- 
dolence from my father to his brother. It has been printed in a Welsh 
periodical magazine. 



C'lxxxiv APPENDIX. 

breaking up, as he expressed it; but that he would do all 
in his power for him. My father and myself waited on the 
Doctor the following day, and he prescribed for him ; but 
from my father's natural aversion to medicine, he refused 
taking any ; at least, he did not comply with the medical 
directions. His symptoms are a cough, shortness of breath, 
an expectoration of a vast quantity of white glutinous 
phlegm, and his legs swell much. The only nourishment 
he has taken since I have been here are cocoa, tea, broth, 
wine and water, sago, and panada. He preached at Car- 
marthen last Sunday fortnight, and at Llanlluan last Sun- 
day se'nnight. At the former place he preached in a most 
powerful and impressive manner to a crowded congregation, 
and at the latter, the most callous and lukewarm would 
have shrunk beneath the strokes of his eloquence, for which 
he was always so remarkable : but what added much to the 
solemnity of the scene was, that he spoke and looked like 
a dying man ; and the whole congregation were in tears, 
thinking that they should never see him again. 

" He still rises early, or rather did rise early until within 
the last few days ; he follows up his usual studies to the 
last. He is extremely pious, and entirely resigned under all 
his afflictions. He continued family prayer until he could 
no longer articulate. On Sunday last he asked Bowmen, 
who was present, to pray, telling him, that he was unable 
on account of the asthma. "Tra yr oeddwn yn galln y> 
said he, " fy hyfryd waith oedd nesau at orseddfainge y 
Gras."* 

" Yesterday, when my mother brought him some flum- 
mery and wine, he, though tottering with weakness, and 
not very intelligible before, stood up to ask a blessing, and 
uttered the following words as distinctly as ever I heard 
him in my life : " Anwyl Arglwydd ! a gaf fi'r fraint un- 



* As long as it was in my power it was my delightful employment to 
approach the throne of grace* 



APPENDIX. clxXXV 

waith yn ychvvaneg O nesau O dy fiaen, a Nefaru vvrthyt a 
deisyf dy fendith. Beth a ddywedaf ? Rhyfedd wyt ti 
y'mhob peth ty yma I golledigaeth ag uffern. Dysg i mi 
i ymostwng i dy ewyllys, a dywedyd gyda'r hen Eli, yr 
Arglvvydd yw efe, gwnaed fel mae da yn ei olwg "* 

" My poor mother is in great grief, and far from well. I 
fear she will not long survive him.f 

" I have proposed selling the Chapel in Water Street, in 
order to pay his debts. J Have you any objection ? The 
Methodists have offered £250 for it. The profits of the 
large Bibles will pay the debt contracted by the small, and 
£200 more will, perhaps, clear the whole. He has made 
his will in favour of my mother, of course, and has left all 
to her for her life, and the remainder at her death to go to 
David Humphreys § and his children. 

" I have watched my father night and day ever since I 
came home, and a more heavenly state of mind I never wit- 
nessed. It is indeed a privilege to be here. May I profit by 
it. 

"'I went on my knees to pray to my dear Redeemer, 
before my departure,' said my poor father one day, ' but I 
was so weak that I could scarcely get up.' 

" A neighbouring clergyman paid him a visit a day or two 
ago, and the only part of his conversation that savoured of 
seriousness was advice to my father not to be dejected, or, 
as he inelegantly expressed himself, ' not to let his heart go 
down.' * It can't go far, Sir, for there is a Rock wider it,' 
was my father's comprehensive and emphatic reply. 



* Beloved Lord ! Should I have the privilege of once more coming before 
thee, to address thee and to implore thy blessing, what shall I say ? wor- 
shipful thou art in every thing on this side of perdition and hell. Teach 
me to bow to thy will, and to say with Eli of old, " It is the Lord, let him 
do with me what seemeth good in his sight." 

f She survived him, however, twenty-six years. 

X He would not have been in debt but for the unfeeling conduct of the 
Calvinistic Methodists. 

^ His son in law. 



clxXXVi APPENDIX. 

" The limits of my paper confine me. My next letter, I 
fear, will bring you bad news. I am yours affectionately, 



Peter Williams. " 



" The Rev. Mr. Williams, 
213 Oxford Street, London.'' 



Three days after this letter was written, my grandfather 
breathed his last. The following is a literal translation of 
the inscription on his tombstone, in the churchyard of 
Llandeveilog, Carmarthenshire : 

" Beneath, lie the remains of the Rev. Peter Williams, late 
of Gelli Lednais, in this parish. His whole life was devoted 
to the temporal and spiritual good of his countrymen. He 
published, for their benefit, three editions of the Welsh 
Quarto Bible, with Annotations on every chapter. 

" He also published an edition of an octavo Bible, and a 
Welsh Concordance ; as well as a number of small tracts ; 
most of these were in Welsh, for which it may truly be said, 
he received in return only ingratitude and persecution. 

" He continued for 53 years a faithful and zealous minister 
of the Gospel, and died rejoicing in God, his Saviour, Au- 
gust 8th, 1796, in the 77th year of his age. 

" For it was not an enemy that reproached me ; then I 
could have borne it ; neither was it he that hated me, that 
magnified himself against me ; but they were mine acquaint- 
ance, with whom I took sweet counsel, and walked unto 
the house of God in company." 

Page iv. line 14. " The only daughter of Mr. 
Morgan Morgans." 

Of the early history of this estimable woman little is now 
known. The name of her father, who lived at Gorse, in the 
parish of Llanarthney, was Morgan Jejikins, and not Mor- 
gan Morgans as is stated in the Memoir. Her mother was 
the daughter of a beneficed clergyman, and for those days, 
was highly educated. She was so well acquainted with 



APPENDIX. clxXXvii 

Latin as to be able to examine my father in that language 
when he visited her in the holidays. She was moreover 
distinguished for her good sense and piety. My grand- 
mother also received, what was then considered to be a 
liberal education ; she inherited the good qualities of her 
mother, and was eminent in those meek, unostentatious 
virtues which adorn the Christian character. In short, as 
a mother, a wife, and a friend, she could not be surpassed. 
In several very trying circumstances she gave indisputable 
evidence that she was no unworthy helpmate to her pious 
and revered husband. Two of her grandsons resided with 
her at Gelly for some months after their father's death, in 
the years 1820, and 1821, and they uniformly received from 
her the attention and kindness of an indulgent mother. As 
her eyes had latterly become dim, she was fond of having a 
chapter in the Bible from her husband's edition read out to 
her, a task which generally fell to the lot of one or other of 
her grandsons. She seemed to bear constantly in mind the 
apostolic precept, " Follow peace with all men." She 
would sometimes express her surprise that at her advanced 
age she should be spared while others, in her estimation far 
more useful, had been taken away. " Although I know it 
is wrong," she would say, " to look behind the veil, yet I 
cannot help thinking, that I have been left in order to be- 
friend poor Eliezer's sons." This seemed to be the case; 
for she provided them with a home, when they had no 
other asylum ; as soon as they were old enough to go out 
into the world, she obtained her release. 

Her death was thus recorded in one of the publications 
of the day : 

"March 8th, 1822, departed this life, at Gelly, near 
Carmarthen, aged 97, Mary, relict of the Rev. Peter 
Williams, author of the first Welsh Annotations on the Bible. 
She was a person of an amiable and benevolent disposition, 
strict integrity, and unaffected piety. Her acts of charity 
and kindness were numerous, but at the same time unosten- 



clxxxviii APPENDIX. 

tatious. In short, she was a Christian in deed as well as in 
profession. Having had the inestimable privilege of being 
brought up under the care and superintendence of pious 
parents, and afterwards of being united to a man of distin- 
guished talents and eminent piety, her growth in grace and 
her improvement in every Christian virtue, knowlege, and 
experience, were known and appreciated by all who had 
the pleasure of her acquaintance. But what added still 
greater value to all her Christian graces was this, that her 
humility, self-denial, and self-abasement were remarkable; 
and she "counted all things but loss, that she might win 
Christ," and frequently declared, that, she considered her- 
self as "less than the least" of all the disciples and fol- 
lowers of Jesus Christ. She retained all her faculties to 
the last, and was perfectly resigned to the Divine Will. 
She was buried in the same grave with her esteemed hus- 
band, in the churchyard of Llandeveilog near Carmarthen." 

Page v. line 18. " More than ordinary degree of 
bodily vigour." 

A gentleman named Wilson and my father were walking- 
home, in Essex, one night, when they were suddenly ar- 
rested in their progress by two powerful men, who de- 
manded their money and their lives. While the taller and 
stronger of the two footpads was preparing to use his blud- 
geon, my father prostrated him with a blow of his fist, 
which, as was afterwards said, " an ox could scarcely have 
received without the same humiliation ;" he then closed 
with his ruffian assailant, who, after a severe struggle of 
some seconds, was completely subdued. Mr. Wilson was 
not so fortunate, being considerably inferior in weight and 
strength ; for he had been overpowered by his antagonist 
at an early period of the affray, and was now shouting lustily 
for assistance. My father instantly responded to the call, 
dragging his prisoner along by the throat. As soon how- 



APPENDrx. clxxxix 

ever as he applied himself to the second aggressor, the first 
made one more desperate effort and got off, leaving his neck- 
cloth and the flap of his jacket in my father's hands. 

Page vii. line 11. "To abandon altogether the 
sports of the field." 

Another cause, perhaps, that induced him to discontinue 
field sports was this. He had one day just returned from 
shooting, and unguardedly brought his loaded gun into the 
house, and deposited it in an unsafe place, when one of his 
younger brothers took it up and presented it at his sister, 
as she was sitting at her work. She providentially stooped 
down at the instant, and the charge passed over her head 
and lodged in the chimney piece. The occurrence was 
attended with nothing more than momentary alarm, but it 
was never forgotten. 

Page vii. line 23. " Rev. E. Evans, an eminent 
Welsh scholar," &c. 

Mr. Evans was born at Cynhawdref, Cardiganshire, 
about the year 1730, and was entered member of Jesus 
College, Oxford, towards the beginning of 1751. After 
leaving College he officiated as curate in several places, 
more particularly at Llanfair Talhaiarn, in Denbighshire, 
Towyn, in Merionethshire ; and Newick, in Kent. 

He was eminent as an antiquary, a poet, and a divine. 
He had always applied himself unremittingly to the culti- 
vation of Welsh literature, and employed much of his leisure 
in transcribing ancient manuscripts, of which he left behind 
him about a hundred volumes of various sizes. 

In the year 1764 he published a quarto volume, which 
is still in high repute, entitled " Dissertatio de Bardis, " 
containing specimens of Welsh poetry with translations. 
His other publications were an English poem called the 
"Loveofour Country;" several Welsh compositions, which 



CXC APPENDIX. 

appeared in " Diddanweh Teuluaidd, " and two volumes of 
sermons from Tillotson and others, translated by him into 
Welsh. 

Having spent the most valuable part of his life in cle- 
rical and literary pursuits, without being able to procure 
the smallest promotion in the church, he lost his fortitude, 
and, melancholy to relate, fell into a habit of drinking, 
which at times produced symptoms of derangement. This 
precluded him from every chance of gaining new friends to 
replace those who ought to have rewarded his merit. 

He inherited a small freehold in Cardiganshire, which, 
in order to raise money upon it to support himself at the 
university, he conveyed over to a younger brother. He died 
in 1790, # in the 58th year of his age. 

All the manuscripts and books possessed by Mr. Evans 
at his death became the property of Paul Paton, Esq. of 
Plasgwyn, Anglesey, in consideration of an annuity of 
twenty pounds, which that gentleman had some years before 
settled upon him. 

The following anecdote of Mr. Evans has been related 
to me by a kind and intelligent friend, f who heard it from 
my father, when he was visiting North Wales in 1814. 

"While my father was in his study, at Mongewell, one 
Saturday evening, he observed a tall uncouth figure, with a 
bag on his back, pass the window. From a peculiar stoop 
in his shoulders, and the awkwardness of his gait,he thought 
he somewhat resembled his old friend ' Jeuan Brydydd 
Hir. " In a minute a knock was heard at the door, and an 
enquiry made for Mr. Williams ; my father went to the door, 
the servant considered the stranger too shabbily dressed to 
be shown into the parlour. It was indeed no other than the 
great antiquary himself, who was travelling,he said, in search 
of a curacy. My father was happy to see him, and gave 



*The Rev. P. B. Williams in his "Tourist's Guide," dates Mr. Evans's 
death in 1789. 

t The Rev. Morris Hughes, P. C. of St. Anne's. 



APPENDIX. CXC1 

him that welcome which is so characteristic of ancient 
Britons when they meet in a foreign land. The next 
morning Mr. Evans offered his assistance at church, and 
took part of the duty. After service, my father and his friend 
were invited by Dr. Barrington to dinner ; and so pleased 
was the bishop with Mr. Evans's society, that he asked him 
to dine with him on the following day also. Judge Bar- 
rington and (I believe) Admiral Barrington, and a large 
landed proprietor in the neighbourhood, were of the party. 
The conversation turned upon antiquities and ancient lite- 
rature. Mr. Evans, after a few glasses of wine, became 
very talkative and agreeable, and he was listened to with 
much delight. My father, who well knew his friend's 
unfortunate propensity, moved off, and the Judge followed, 
requesting my father to wait a little, as they were all en- 
chanted with Mr. Evans's conversation; inquiring, at the 
same time, what could be such a man's history, and that 
they must have more of his company. The squire's carriage 
was already at the door to take some of the party away, 
and they separated. They met, however, once or twice 
more, and Mr. Evans became more and more the favourite 
of his new friends. In fact, there were few topics with which 
he was unacquainted, and with which the power of his 
great mind could not readily and successfully grapple. 

" The morning came when Mr. Evans was to take his 
departure. He looked low and pensive ; and after break- 
fast asked permission to ' return thanks,' which he did in 
a most impressive manner. Then, addressing my father, 
with his hands firmly clasped and his eyes filled with tears, 
' I assure you, sir/ said he, ' I know not when, where, or 
how to get another meal.' He hastily left the house, on 
his way to London, in search of a curacy ; and my father 
never saw him afterwards." 



OXCU APPENDIX. 

Pa^e xvii. line 19. "Galloway House, June 22, 

1785." 

For the following letters, which, as they chiefly relate to 
this period of my father's life, seem to find here their ap- 
propriate place, I am indebted to the kindness of my uncle, 
who gave them to me a short time before his death : they 
are illustrative of the interest which my father took in the 
improvement and the happiness of a brother, to whom, 
through life, he was most warmly and tenderly attached. 

"MY DEAR BROTHER, Galloway House, April 27th, 1786. 
" I am happy to hear you are well, and happier still that you 
are industrious. Mr, Hughes* gives me room to hope that 
you are not at College to no purpose. Continue to merit 
his esteem. He has been led to suppose, from the direction 
of my letters, which pass through the hands of Lord Gallo- 
way, who is at present attending his parliamentary duties, 
that I am in town ; when you have an opportunity, I will 
thank you to undeceive him. Had I been in London, you, 
of course, would have been furnished with unquestionable 
evidence of the fact, as no impediments, excepting such 
incidents as ' flesh is heir to/ should have prevented me 
from renewing my acquaintance with the i glistering spires' 
of our Alma Mater, or have deprived me of the pleasure of 
your society. 

" Did you receive my two last letters, one under cover of 
Lord Galloway, and the other in the ordinary course? I 
addressed you as ' Commensarius,' by way of distinction ; 
for, not being very well acquainted with the domestics of the 
establishment, I was apprehensive, if I had written Batteler, 
of its being mistaken for Butler. I well remember the 
rooms in No 3 ; but, pray, do yours face Exeter College, or 
Jes. Coll. Lane ? I resided myself some time in those 
opposite the latter. The fewer acquaintances you have the 

* Afterwards Dr. Hughes, Principal of Jesus College, Oxford. — Editor. 



APPENDIX. CXC111 

better, if you can preserve a cheerful mind. Your reliance 
on the providence of God will enable you to do this, while 
the enjoyment of your studies, and your walks amidst the 
beauties of nature, will supply you with ample food for 
contemplation and entertainment. Few things require 
more necessary caution and discernment, or betray more 
the character of the man, than the selection of what in 
secular language are called friends. As in the world, so at 
college, there exist more fools than wise men ; the former 
are best known by their gay attire, and their unmeaning 
and affected air in the day time, and by the loudness of 
their voices, and the extravagance and frequency of their 
revels at night. Avoid such companions as you would a 
contagion, and select those who, by their diligence in study, 
and the integrity of their lives, will minister to your im- 
provement. I recommend to your frequent perusal the 
1 Proverbs of Solomon' and i Ecclesiastes,' which are rich 
stores of wisdom, and which may be of infinite use to both 
your temporal and your eternal interest. 

"Consider that we are placed here by an all wise God, 
that it is impious and cowardly to desert our station, or 
murmur at His providence, (remember the waters of Meri- 
bah !) that it is our duty, whoever falls, to strain every 
nerve for the protection of ourselves as well as others at the 
post assigned us. Knowledge and learning, combined with 
religion, are the best means of being useful in the world ; 
and, when exercised with a humble and prayerful mind, 
may be expected to be watered with the heavenly dew 
of God's blessing. Some great and good man has re- 
marked that ' study without prayer is atheism/ and that 
' prayer without study is presumption.' Make a proper 
use of the precious time allotted you, and offer daily ad- 
dresses to the God of all wisdom for the success of your ex- 
ertions. ' Paul planted and Apollos watered, but God gave 
the increase.' Complain not of the world, which was a 
paradise until man polluted it ; but grieve for its inhabi- 

o 



CXCIV APPENDIX. 

tants, and be thankful it is not past redemption. Is it not 
bought with a Saviour's blood ? and made the road to hap- 
pier mansions? Is it not the laboratory, if I may so call it, 
in which we are prepared for better things ? That you and 
I may be of the blessed number is the fervent prayer of, 
My dear Peter, your very affectionate brother, 

"E. Williams." 

" MY DEAR BROTHER, Galloway House, March 28, 178G. 

" Your letters of late bear evident marks of rapid improve- 
ment. Your language is more correct, and your writing 
considerably neater than it used to be. It is not beneath a 
man of sense to pay a little attention to these things, indeed 
it indicates idleness or indifference to neglect them ; the one 
detrimental to the individual himself, the other slighting to 
his friends. The external appearance of our letters, as well 
as our persons, may, without censure surely, be attended to ; 
the fault is, when, through our solicitude about them, we 
neglect more important things ; when, to write a fair hand, 
we are inattentive to what distinguishes us from the illite- 
rate, the elegance of our diction ; and, when to adorn our 
bodies, we forget the cultivation of our minds. In your 
present situation you can hardly bestow too much atten- 
tion on either of these, provided that attention be in pro- 
portion to their importance. The improvement of your mind, 
I feel convinced, you will not neglect ; to facilitate this you 
will listen with unremitting care to the instructions of your 
tutors. When unavoidably hindered, you should endea- 
vour to retrieve the loss by double diligence in your own 
apartments. Never go to lecture without first studying it 
over carefully — for the subject is generally known, in order 
to make yourself master of it ; and while you endeavour to 
clothe your ideas in the best language, be sure that you ex- 
press them in a plain perspicuous manner, which, by habit, 
will soon become natural to you. But do not satisfy your- 
self with mere attendance on lectures, unless you thoroughly 



APPENDIX. CXCV 

comprehend the sense and meaning. Review the instruc- 
tions in your own mind, peruse some authors on the same 
subject, and note down the distinctions and omissions, if 
any, or whatever you may consider as most particularly 
worthy of recollection, as well as the result of your own 
reasonings, which, at a future period, you may apply to 
some use, and improve to further advantage. 

" The public lectures in hall, in the morning, should like- 
wise be attended ; and, as you will there be in the presence 
of many close observers, and, perhaps, of some few juvenile 
critics, you should be well prepared in case you should be 
'put on.' Always provide yourself with the necessary 
books ; and let no opportunity of improving yourself escape 
you'. 

"Be very attentive to quantity, if you would avoid ridicule; 
use a Gradus at first, and mark the words where you cannot 
trust to your memory. The better and more scholar-like 
method will be to practise versification, which, besides 
making you acquainted with quantity, will give you a taste 
for composition. You will require a few lines weekly at 
the end of your theme ; these should be well done, and 
should bear an epigrammatic turn ; such a book as ' Owen's 
Epigrams' may be of some use on such occasions, not for 
the purpose of plagiarism, but for imitation. l Martial,' I 
suppose, you are master of. Let all your exercises bear 
marks of industry. If lectured in logic, you should read 
' Watts' on that science very attentively ; if in ethics, 
' Hutchinson's Moral Philosophy,' and ' Xenophon's Me- 
morabilia.' You will oblige me much by giving me a 
specimen of your abilities in Latin composition. Suppose 
you render Pope's ' Dying Christian' into elegiac verse, 
and send it to me as soon as you are able. 

" I am happy to find you in so good a disposition ; your 
filial affection does you credit. But I hope my poor mother 
is now resigned, and no longer repines at the dispensations 
of Providence. John at least, in the absence of ourselves 
and our good father, is a sympathizing and affectionate 



CXCV1 APPENDIX. 

companion. My wishes are often similar to your own in 
this respect; I eagerly anticipate the period when I may 
administer to her comfort ; but we must wait the Almighty's 
own time. The more diligent you are, and the more re- 
conciled to a college life, and to your loss, the more capable 
you will be of alleviating the sorrows of your mother, and 
of adding to the gratification of your friends. We know 
not how long we may live, and it would be in vain for us to 
inquire, were it desirable ; it will be enough for us to con- 
sider the shortness and uncertainty of life, and to bear fruit 
in proportion to the advantages we have received; not to bury 
our talents in the earth, not to encumber the ground like 
barren fig trees, but to bring forth the good fruit of substantial 
holiness, that we may in due time be gathered as God's 
wheat into his garner. It is the language of despondency 
to say, that after all our exertions to attain learning we are 
not the happier, and we may die disappointed of our hopes. 
Learning, when exempt from vain conceit, and when 
founded on Christian humility — otherwise it frequently 
proves but a curse to the possessor — is one of the means 
which our Heavenly Father blesses for the benefit of man- 
kind ; it is the harvest which, well managed, furnishes the 
most valuable part of man with a plenteousness that may 
become eminently useful. The husbandman may sometimes 
find his hopes frustrated ; but must he neglect to commit 
the grain to the ground because he fears an unfruitful season, 
or because an unseasonable storm may desolate his fields ? 
No. He performs his duty of sowing the seed, and leaves 
the result to a wisdom infinitely higher than his own. Do 
you therefore, in faith, exercise your talents, of whatever 
degree they may be, for God knows how to apply them, and 
'in due time you will reap if you faint not.' It is our busi- 
ness to live so as to be useful to others, ' non nobis nati 
sumus,' and be assured no life is pleasing to the Author of 
our being but such as is beneficial to man ; it is, above all, 
our duty, while we are not indifferent to the necessary affairs 
of life, to be prepared for death as if it were already in view; 



APPENDIX. CXCVll 

that is to say, to be always on our watch, like the wakeful 
sentinel. The 38th No. of the 'Adventurer' is well worth 
your reading. 

" Your sense of religious duty will, I trust, impress these 
things on your mind ; and you will find, that the improve- 
ment of our hearts is as much more momentous than the 
cultivation of our minds, as the improvement of the mind 
is than the decoration of the person ; but I have said the 
less of this, because you seem to be sensible of what I 
would wish to say. 

" Give me a proof of your religious disposition, by bearing 
with resignation so great a loss as that of an invaluable 
sister, and by submitting with becoming humility to the 
dispensations of Providence. No person has had a greater 
loss in her death than myself, and no one more deeply feels 
the pangs of separation. The smitten heart will bleed ; 
the workings of nature will have vent; but I am persuaded 
that it is incumbent on me to cultivate the disposition of 
a follower of Christ, and to yield up with gratitude what has 
been given in love. 

"I hope that the new objects you daily see will attract 
your attention, and that the useful and sacred subjects you 
are studying will heal your mind. If you want money, 
write to my father, who has some of mine in his hands, and 
he will send you what you require. I have that opinion of 
you, that you will not ask for more than is absolutely 
necessary. Do not be dejected ; assume the man, and act 
the part of a rational Christian. Let me soon know how 
you spend your time, and who your companions are : and 
be ever convinced of the sincerity of, my dear Peter, your 
very affectionate brother, 

E. Williams." 

"P. S. Although I have written more at large than I at 
first intended, excuse the haste and carelessness with which 
it has been done." 



CM'VUI A1M»1.M)1\ 



"MY DEAR BROTHER, Galloway House, October, 1780. 

" Your studies, I have no doubt, are prosecuted with your 
usual diligence and perseverance. The vacation is a favour- 
able season for cultivating the acquaintance of the muses, 
and the Bodleian # is not a bad levee room in which to get 
introduced to them. Your principal object, though, should 
be to make yourself thorough master of the classics, ex- 
cellent editions of which you will find in the library. All 
those of them with which you are not acquainted, should 
be now perused with attention and with critical nicety. 
Ancient and Modern History may keep pace with your clas- 
sical studies, and will form a good hand-maid to wait on 
the Latin or Grecian muse. ' Rollings Ancient History' 
(though I have often perused it before) I am now reading, 
with great pleasure, with my young pupils. In the library 
you will find among the modern historians, Robertson and 
Gibbon, both of whom are worthy of your attention. The 
' Decline of the Roman Empire' will lead you to the dark 
ages, and ' Charles V.' will guide you out of them. There is 
a 'History of Europe in a series of Letters/ which will serve, 
in some measure, to fill up the chasm between the two. 
The histories of America and Scotland, by the same author, 
will afford you much entertainment. I say nothing of the 
History of England, by Hume and Smollett, taking it for 
granted that you are now sufficiently acquainted with its 
interesting contents. Whatever branch of literature you 
engage in, forget not to study it critically, by availing your- 
self of every geographical and biographical assistance that 
may render you familiar with the localities and the indivi- 
duals to whom reference is occasionally made. To peruse 
history without good maps is like reading Euclid without 
referring to the 'pictures/ as a fellow once called geometrical 
figures. But I have no doubt that you read judiciously, 
that you conduct your studies in a systematical manner, 

*Ilis brother was sub-librarian of the Bodleian at this period. 



APPENDIX. CXCLX 

and that you do not travel through authors without remem- 
bering the cui bono — without always having an object in 
view, therefore what I have been scribbling, in so magiste- 
rial and pedantic a strain must be to you unnecessary, 
and must appear little better than the officious interference 
of paternal regard. 

" Let me hear from you frequently ; tell me particularly 
how you proceed sub umbra academi. Your proposal of 
writing once for my twice is certainly very good, for one 
letter of yours is confessedly worth two of mine. But you 
should have heard from me sooner had I not been from 
home. Two of my pupils and I have been on a tour through 
the country, and on a voyage round the greater part of the 
Scottish coast. Among other places we visited the Isle of 
Man. I would have sent you my journal if I had thought 
it worth your perusal. 

"My mind is at present engaged on a subject in which your 
exertions may be of service to me. I want you to make a 
search amongst the MSS. in the Bodleian library, as there 
probably may be some which can elucidate the pedigree of 
the Stewart family. Lord Galloway has some idea of 
claiming the title of Duke of Lennox. He is inquiring 
into the history of his ancestors, as if he had such an object 
in view. The Duke of Richmond has the title at present • 
he derives it from a natural son of Charles II. on whom 
that monarch conferred it. The hereditary right is vested 
in the remains of the Pretender's family, now at Rome, and 
after their demise (a period perhaps not very distant), it will 
revert, as is generally supposed, to the Galloway family. 
The origin of the family, to give you an idea of what I 
wish you to inquire into, is, in some measure, Welsh. 
Fleance, the son of Bancho, fled into Wales, from the 
tyranny of Shakespeare's Macbeth, and married Nesta the 
daughter of Griffith ap Llewelyn, Prince of North Wales. 
The issue of this marriage was Walter, surnamed the Steward, 
who coming to Scotland and quelling a rebellion in the 
Isles, with great address, was so well recommended to the 



CC APPEXDIX. 

reigning monarch, that he was created steward of that part 
of the country, and in process of time his descendants were 
created higli stewards of Scotland; from which official 
appellation it is conjectured that the present family name 
is derived. At least many authors suppose so, and Camden 
among others. Sir John Stewart of Bronkill, a descendant 
of Walter Steward, had several sons. The second son was 
ancestor of the Darnley branch of the Stewart family, and 
of the Earls and Dukes of Lennox, whose male line is now 
nearly extinct. The third son was ancestor of the Galloway 
family, to whom the title of Duke of Lennox will revert 
in case of failure of male issue in the Darnley branch. 
But one of the descendants # of this son (a son or grandson 
of his, I believe) left no issue male ; buthis daughter, Marion 
Stewart, inherited his estate, and married her cousin, John 
Stewart of Jedburgh, from which marriage, in a direct line, 
is descended the present Earl of Galloway. The fourth son 
of Sir John Stewart of Bronkyll, above mentioned, was 
William Stewart of Jedworth, the father of Sir William 
Stewart, the father of John Stewart, who married the above 
Marion, as has been already remarked; I write from memory, 
and therefore am not certain of Christian names. Now, the 
question is, whether this last named John Stewart was the 
eldest son of Sir William Stewart of Jedworth; if he was, 
the two branches of Galloway and Jedworth are united, 
and the claim of the Galloway family to the title of Duke 
of Lennox is incontrovertible. 

" I have, at my Lord Galloway's request, drawn up an 
account of the family from the books in this library. The 
authors I consulted were ' Douglas's Peerage of Scotland/ 
the 'Rudiments of Honour,' ' Nisbet's Heraldry,' and 
'Anderson's Genealogical Tables.' His Lordship seemed 
pleased with my manuscript, as far as it goes; but it is 
merely a sketch. If you can find any manuscript among 



* Sir Walter Stewart of Dalswinton, son of Sir John Stewart. 

Debrett's Peerage. 



APPENDIX. CC1 

Dudley's collections, Rawlinson's, or any other in the Bod- 
leian, or Jesus College library, upon the subject, you will 
oblige me much by transmitting me a short extract. Some 
old deeds of gift to religious houses, by the introduction 
of an individual's name and lineage, may assist you a little, 
if such can be found. But perhaps you will exclaim with 
Sidney, I am no herald to inquire of men's pedigrees, it 
sufficeth me to know of their virtues. However, write soon, 
and herald or no herald, I remain your ever affectionate 
brother, 

"E. Williams." 
" Mr. Peter Williams, 
Jesus Coll. Oxon. 

" MY DEAR BROTHER, Galloway House, Jan. 22, 1787. 

" You are now, I suppose, as deeply engaged as ever, as I 
find your term has commenced. I cannot, therefore, hope to 
hear much at length from you. However, if you can steal just 
ten minutes from your more profitable engagements, — and 
mark, this will be no crime, for ' procrastination' only l is the 
thief of time' — even a few lines will be acceptable, merely 
to inform me that you are well, and that you have not for- 
gotten me. I am gratified to learn that you have made 
some progress in the mathematics, as you will not find it 
so advantageous to attend lectures on natural philosophy 
until you are a tolerable proficient in them. The solution 
of many problems in physics requires a competent knowledge 
of Geometry and Algebra; a portion of what you hear will 
be lost upon you unless you are acquainted, in some degree, 
with those sciences. Should you attend Hornsby on astro- 
nomy, a decent knowledge of trigonometry will be requisite; 
my opinion is, therefore, that you had better defer becoming 
one of his pupils, until you. are possessed of those prelimi- 
nary branches of learning which may enable you to leave 
him with advantage. I know not whether Williamson 
delivers lectures at present on Euclid, trigonometry, &c. 
In my time he was attended in a room under the museum 



CCU APPENDIX. 

by a very considerable number of pupils, and he varied his 
subjects every term. If he do not, perhaps somebody else 
may still read public lectures upon those and similar sub- 
jects. You had better inquire: and if you find them at 
present in any repute, two or three preparatory courses may 
be useful before you attend at the observatory. 

" With regard to the accommodation of your time to these 
courses, you might make such amicable arrangements with 
your fellow-librarian as may be suitable to each of you, 
whenever the hours of lecture may clash with those of your 
other occupation. But I enter on these subjects merely be- 
cause you seem to have an inclination that way ; for my own 
part, I would rather that your time and attention were de- 
voted to the classics the first years, for if a thorough know- 
ledge of the Greek and Roman authors be not gained while 
you are young, it will never be acquired. With regard to 
the sciences, men have been known to make a considerable 
progress in them at a more advanced age. Lay a solid 
foundation of classical literature, and you will find no diffi- 
culty in constructing an edifice excelling in usefulness and 
beauty. The formation of a style, the habit of composing 
and the knack of versifying ought not to be out of your 
mind at present; you are of an age to attend to them now 
with advantage ; but if you neglect them, it will soon be 
too late in life to think of them with any hope of success. 
You cannot, therefore, be too attentive to the subjects 
generally recommended to young men by the custom of 
the university during the first years of their residence. 
Your Ciceronian composition gratified me much, as it was 
an essay in the very course I would humbly chalk out for 
you. I wish now to have a sample of what you can do in 
the poetical way ; you have long promised me a translation 
from Pope — when am I to expect it? But I would not 
break in upon your time. I know how attentive you are 
to your tutor, and I commend you for it. Do not miss any 
of his lectures upon any consideration. However, when you 
have a spare half hour, let me hear from you. Can you 



APPENDIX. CC1U 

find anything on the subject mentioned in my last ? Adieu. 
« — Write soon to your affectionate brother, 

«. E. Williams." 

" MY DEAR BROTHER, Galloway House, Feb. 19, 1787. 

" As you have not favoured me with a letter for some 
time, you will allow it is natural that I should be anxious 
to hear from you. My friends at home are equally remiss, 
no account having reached me from them since November 
last ; this circumstance adds to my anxiety. If you are in 
the blessed enjoyment of health and happiness, I shall have 
no just cause to repine. But some intelligence, however 
brief, of yourself, John, and my dear parents, will be the 
means of relieving my mind of a load of uneasiness. 

". Have you been able to hit upon anything relative to 
the Stewarts yet ? In the l Notitia Monastica/ a book pub- 
lished by Tanner, you will find old charters of lands, &c. 
given to monasteries and religious houses in ancient times. 
There were several in the southern part of Scotland, such 
as Melross, Dryburgh, Jedworth, &c. As witnesses to 
those deeds, and sometimes as donors, the name of the 
persons I am inquiring after occasionally occur. The 
period about which I am most at loss for information is 
from the year 1340 to the year 1400 ; and the individuals 
I am most desirous of being acquainted with are Sir Wil- 
liam Steward, or William Seneschallus, of Jedburgh, sheriff 
of Teviot-Dale about the year 1390, and his son Sir John 
Stewart or Steward, who married Dame Marion Stewart, of 
Dalswinton and Garlies, A. D. 1392. What I want to prove 
is, that Sir William Steward was son of Sir John Steward 
of Dreghorn and Crookstone, son of Sir Alexander Stewart 
of Darnley, ancestor of the Earls and Dukes of Lennox : 
and Sir John Stewart of Jedburgh, who married Dame 
Marion, daughter and heiress of Sir Walter Stewart, of 
Dalswinton, was his eldest son. Could this be effected, I 
should be able to make out what I want. Pardon me for 
thus troubling you with so many uninteresting particulars ; 



CCIV APPENDIX. 

but I imagined that, by entering into some of the minutiae, 
you would be better able to furnish me with the information 
required. Inclosed are a few proofs that I have procured 
of the existence of the above named individuals from Rymer's 
Fcedera, which you have in the library, and which I regard 
as unquestionable authority. If you can add to it any 
corroborating particulars from ' Tanner's Notitia,' 'Dugdale's 
Baronage/ Tanner's MSS. in the Picture Gallery, or Dug- 
dale's, &c. MSS. in the Gallery Tur. Bib. Bod. you will be 
rendering me essential service. You may confine your in- 
quiry to half a century, from A.D. 1350 to 1400. I should 
think you might find something, while you are already in 
the library, without much trouble, especially as you are 
thus told nearly the date of the papers you are to examine. 
Particularize the document in which you happen to meet 
with such names, and give me a short extract from it, 
together with the No. of the vol. and page, if the book be 
in print, or the No. and title of the MS. if unpublished. 
Yours most affectionately, "E. Williams." 

Galloway House, 
" MY DEAREST BROTHER, March 26, 1787. 

" Your letter, like most things connected with you, 
afforded me much pleasure. After so long an epistolary 
interval, I was doubly happy to find that you were well, and 
doing well. I have lately received a communication from 
home too, and my father has been so good as to favour me 
with two or three lines, although only in form of a postscript 
to John's letter; but they conveyed the agreeable intelli- 
gence of the welfare of all friends, and I am satisfied. 

" With regard to visiting Wales next summer, it is as 
yet a matter of considerable uncertainty. It has been talked 
of, but not fully resolved on. For my own part, I think it 
may as well be deferred till you come to relieve me, for I 
am still of opinion that your best plan will be to succeed 
me here as soon as your college education is completed. 
Moreover, it may be of no disservice to you, whatever line 



APPENDIX. • CCV 

of life you may choose to pursue. And here allow me to 
repeat that, with regard to your future prospects, I leave 
the subject entirely to your own judgment and inclination, 
as you ought to be best acquainted with the bent of your 
own mind. I will not oppose your entering the church, if 
you prefer it ; but this requires serious deliberation, deep 
study, and much prayer : for it is an office of the greatest 
responsibility and importance — a function which, I fear, 
too many in the present day most odiously embrace from 
mercenary motives, forgetting the great ends of the pro- 
fession, and the solemn account which they must give of 
their charge to the Chief Shepherd of souls. My opinion 
is, therefore, that you had better defer it for some time ; it 
will divert your attention from your present pursuits, dis- 
arrange the whole order of you studies, and, in some mea- 
sure, retard your progress in life. As a student, the classics 
and the elegance of composition, in prose and verse, should 
be, next to your Christian duties, the main objects of your 
industry. Afterwards the sciences, such of them as are 
likely to be of seryice to you on your admission into the 
senior class, and on your application for your degree, such 
as logic, rhetoric, and ethics. The acquisition of these is 
not difficult, nor devoid of interest; neither will they prove 
useless when you enter upon the world. Were you to 
think at present of the clerical profession, all these must 
vanish, ' like the baseless fabric of a vision/ to make way 
for the more solid and sacred structure of theology. 

" I thank you for the little specimen you sent me of your 
poetical abilities. If the lines be not correct, they evince 
that you are not very far from arriving at the formation of 
a verse. Complain not of the muses. If you can address 
them with resolution and perseverance, they will be pro- 
pitious enough to you to aid you, so far as you require, in 
your academical exercises. They are always favourable to 
the bold, though they may sometimes reasonably look shy 
on the irresolute and timid. And if they are not, you must 
make them so. 



CCV1 ' APPENDIX. 

" I hope you are happy where you are, and have every 
thing you want ; if not, let me know, and every effort in ray 
power shall be made to assist you. Write soon. May 
every blessing attend you both here and hereafter. With 
this prayer I subscribe myself, my dearest brother, yours 
most affectionately, 

" E. Williams." 

" Mt DEAR BROTHER, Galloway House, Nov. 3, 1787. 

"The good report of your health, and the manner of your 
employment gratified me much. If your time is profitably 
engaged, I have no doubt it is spent agreeably. I am sin- 
cerely concerned at the account of my poor mother's indis- 
position ; my desire of being able personally to comfort her 
is at present of no avail : but I trust she is now re-estab- 
lished in her health : while we all are consulting our respec- 
tive interests, I much fear she has by far the most trouble- 
some and the most anxious lot. My father says nothing 
of his intended publication ; I trust it is in a state of for- 
wardness, and that he will soon get rid of the laborious 
engagement. 

" In addition to what I have already written respecting 
your studies, I would wish you to subscribe to some circu- 
lating library, ' Wood's ' in High Street, for instance, where 
you may find some instructive and entertaining works ; for 
whilst you are labouring to enrich your mind with the 
golden stores of ancient learning, you should not neglect the 
perusal of the writings of a more modern date, which will 
not only entertain but open and dilate your understanding, 
as well as supply it with a valuable fund of proper images 
and expressions : but beware that you distinguish between 
such works as serve only for amusement, and those which 
are conducive to solid and permanent improvement. 

" It was only with a view to your own ease and indul- 
gence that I presumed upon the possibility of your missing 
the present Michaelmas term, supposing you would not 
require it, as you had already kept two ; however, as you 



APPENDIX. CCV11 

are arrived at college, it may be for the best. I wish you 
much success at your expected examination : but perhaps 
you would have shone to greater advantage if you had de- 
ferred it till you had made a greater progress in your studies. 
I long much to see you, and have some hopes that we may 
contrive to meet next summer. Possibly I may come into 
the country ; should this be impracticable, I have some 
prospect of your being able to visit Scotland, if agreeable to 
you. Believe me, nothing would afford me greater enjoy- 
ment than the society and conversation of my dear brother : 
there are a thousand little things I would wish to ask, 
and a thousand things I would wish to say, which cannot so 
well be committed to writing ; and last, though not least, I 
anticipate much pleasure from finding you in every way 
improved. 

" I have troubled you with the outlines of my short tour 
in Ireland this summer : I sent it to the country, imagining 
you were there. Should it reach its intended destination, I 
hope you will pardon the hurry in which it was scribbled. 
Possibly some of our letters may miscarry; but fortunately 
for those written on my part there will be no great loss, they 
are written in such a manner and in so short a time, that 
if they are not lost, I must request you will commit them to 
the flames as soon as read. Indeed, I should be happy to 
hear from you oftener ; and if you knew how much engaged 
I am, you would not stand so much on punctilios, but 
would write whenever you had time, and that without the 
least reserve, if you loved me. What would you think of 
spending the winter at college ? The reason why I ask the 
question is this — the family here have some intention of pro- 
curing a person to assist me, as they say I have too much 
to do. It is only on condition that I approve of it : should 
the proposal be made, would you like me to mention your 
name ? In my opinion, it would be no bad move; for besides 
the valuable advantages that would accrue to you in a 
variety of ways, it would be a favourable opportunity of 
our meeting, and spending a few months very happily 



CCVlll APPENDIX. 

together. Should you approve of the proposal, let me hear 
from you soon. All I think most necessary on your part 
would be writing and drawing. My predecessor boasted 
of these qualifications, and I am deficient in them. As I 
am not inferior to him, that I know of, in other particulars, 
this has not been hinted at as a deficiency; but I feel it 
would add to our weight if you could pick up these accom- 
plishments. As to the former, you may go to W — as a 
school-boy once more ; and I will write to Mr. Burgess to 
give you copies in private, whenever it should be agreeable 
to yourself, and convenient to him. In six weeks during 
the Christmas vacation, you might do much. As to the 
latter, you might get a master at Oxford during the spring 
without interfering much with your other lectures. Besides 
the present benefit of which the acquisition of this accom- 
plishment may be to you, it will improve your taste for the 
picturesque objects of nature, as well as heighten your relish 
for fine paintings, half of the beauties of which are often lost 
to us, owing to our utter ignorance of the common rules of 
drawing. I calculate the expense at seven guineas ; a 
guinea on entrance, and one every twelve lectures ; in three 
months you would make considerable progress. My father 
would not object to it, surely, on my writing to him and 
explaining matters: even if he should, depend upon my 
assistance. But acquaint me with your sentiments in the 
meanwhile. It is said of Zeuxis and Parhasius, two cele- 
brated painters of antiquity, that, in a contention for the 
palm of priority, when they had produced their respective 
subjects, the birds came to pick the grapes which the 
former had painted ; and that on the latter exhibiting his 
piece, Zeuxis desired the curtain should be raised that he 
might see the painting! The curtain happening to be the 
painting, Zeuxis' acknowledged himself conquered. Al- 
though I shall not expect you to rival these masters of the 
art, you may, probably, attain sufficient for your purpose. 
Write soon, and believe me ever your affectionate brother, 

" E. Williams." 



APPENDIX. CCIX 

"MY DEAR BROTHER, Galloway House, Nov. 7th, 1787. 

** Your interest is ever near my heart, and did I know what 
course would be the most agreeable and advantageous to 
you, I would not hesitate to seize the opportunity of ex- 
erting myself in your behalf. Every man has a bias towards 
some line of life or other, and he will best succeed in that 
line to which his inclination leads him, of what that may be 
he is himself the best judge. 

" The suggestions I dropped to you formerly on a similar 
subject, were occasioned by some hints thrown out by my 
father. It was natural for me to wish to promote your hap- 
piness, and to do so in the way he thought most eligible. I 
acknowledge that it has its difficulties, that it requires much 
time to mature our plan, and that after all it may not suc- 
ceed. The expense will be certain, and the returns at any 
rate very precarious. Your age would add to the inconve- 
nience of waiting ten years, and labouring twenty, in a 
profession in which you would have so many able compe- 
titors, and by which you might at last perhaps find it diffi- 
cult to earn a tolerable subsistence. Had you a certain 
independence, in case of disappointment, it would lessen 
the difficulty ; as it is, I can only say that you may call all 
I have yours as long as I live; and if you would prefer run- 
ning so great a risk of labour and time to a less harassing 
and more certain pursuit you will find in me every wished 
for assistance. But as at your time of life you would 
naturally wish to settle and be of some consolation to your 
parents sooner than you possibly could by following so 
laborious and uncertain a profession, I beg leave once more 
to submit it to your own choice ; either way you may de- 
pend on every aid both monitory and pecuniary within the 
range of my means. However, you will do well seriously 
and solemnly to weigh the matter in your mind ; foralthough, 
as I have always said you might take sanctuary in the 
church when every other prospect failed, I do not mean to 

P 



CCX APPENDIX. 

exclude from your view the vast importance and responsi- 
bility of the ministerial functions, or that your judgment 
should be at all swayed by any other motives than such as 
the standard of truth demands. Those who flee to the 
altar, as an asylum from poverty and labour, must, in their 
deplorable ignorance of the duties of a Christian minister, 
possess a strangely inadequate and erroneous idea of the 
sanctity and importance of the employment. 

" I approve of the course you are about to adopt, because 
I perceive from your letters a correct notion of the subject, 
and something like an inclination to come to some settled 
mode of life. You are very good to leave it to my choice ; 
it would be abusing so much goodness to put the slightest 
degree of force on your inclination. I did not apprehend 
that an irresolution in your choice of a profession would retard 
your progress in your studies; your academical travels might 
advance you equally towards both, and when you had 
reached the goal, determine finally on your future pursuits. 

1 Hie locus est, ubi se via findit in arabas/ 

However, as it is, it would be safest and most judicious to 
accept Mr. Hughes's kind offer, and then you will have 
nothing to look to but one uniform line of study. In case 
you close with this, you may disregard the hint suggested 
to you in my last, as your time will be otherwise and better 
occupied now. 

" I am, my dear brother, yours most affectionately, 

"E. Williams." 

" MY DEAR BROTHER, "Galloway House, June 2nd, 1788. 
" I lately received from home a double letter, in which my 
father and John joined to give me no unfavourable account 
of the state of things in Water Street. From some hints they 
throw out, I conjecture I am indebted to you for the plea- 
sure of hearing from them : accept my thanks, then, 
for the greatest satisfaction I have received for some time, 



APPENDIX. CCX1 

as it is three or four months since a letter from that part of 
the country reached me. I much fear my dear mother 
has been sorely afflicted, however, it is consoling to think 
she is so much better. John seems mightily pleased with 
his prospects, and, like Alnascher of old, is already dis- 
posing of his fund of riches ; but I trust he will not re- 
semble his prototype throughout, and kick up the basket 
which is the foundation of his anticipated grandeur ; that 
he is reconciled to his situation and in the enjoyment of 
much happiness is a source of gratification to me, as few 
things would please me more than his prosperity : but I 
should have thought him more likely to succeed in a more 
elevated station ; however, it is preferable that he should 
follow his own inclination, and if he be satisfied with his 
choice, I am sure I am. 

" When you next write to Pritchard, please to present my 
compliments to him, and inform him that a line from his 
pen will be most acceptable when he has nothing better to 
do. You are right to keep up your correspondence with 
him ; it will afford you much entertainment, and he is a 
very worthy fellow. 

" With regard to your request in favour of your friend, I 
must at once come to an issue, and give you a refusal. I 
trust you are persuaded that nothing would afford me more 
real pleasure than an opportunity of obliging you, but in 
this case I am exceedingly sorry it is quite out of my power. 
I have not yet been introduced to the Bishop of St. David's, 
and before I am known, were I in his diocese to grant a 
title which would eventually prove a fraudulent one, it 
might very justly prejudice him against me. Besides, to 
give a false title, and solemnly to assert it as a fair one, is an 
execrable crime, and not j ustifiable by any palliation that 
can be offered. It is owing to this sinistrous practice that 
so many vagrant clergy, especially from our own country, 
flock to England in search of employment, to the disgrace 
of the profession ; indeed it has become so notorious, that 
nothing short of episcopal interference can remedy the evil. 



CCX11 APPENDIX. 

As early as the fifth century this corruption had crept into 
the church, and in the council of Chalcedon, it was so in- 
dignantly and justly condemned, that the orders of all thus 
fraudulently ordained were declared null and void ; and 
themselves, to the reproach of those who so ordained them, 
were declared incapable of performing any clerical duties. 
The giver of the title commits a fraud, with the aggravation 
of setting a bad example ; and the receiver enters on his 
ministry with a lie in his mouth, exhibiting at once his un- 
fitness for the office, as well as the little reason he has to hope 
for God's protection and blessing in the pursuit of his 
labours. In short, it is a perfect prostitution of holy things. 
You not only know my sentiments on this subject, but, I 
trust, see it in the same light, and I cannot persuade myself 
but that your kindness of disposition got the better of your 
judgment. F — made me a similar request last year, and I 
entreated him not to tempt me again to such dereliction of 
duty, and I hope you will grant me the same indul- 
gence. 

" I trust your study of men and books, as well as every 
attention to personal and mental improvement, are advancing 
rapidly, especially such studies as are subservient to the 
great ends of the ministry : cultivate an acquaintance with 
all the pious and useful clergy. Let me know what society 
you enjoy, and what authors you read, and write as soon as 
you can to, my dear brother, yours most affectionately, 

"E. Williams." 

" DEAR BROTHER, Galloway House, Sept. 3rd, 1789. 

" Immediately on the receipt of your letter I wrote to my 
father and requested him to send you what you say you have 
received. It was not in my power to assist you this time ; 
that circumstance, together with the number of my engage- 
ments, prevented my communicating with you sooner. Par- 
don me if I may appear to have been negligent, so far was 
it from this, that you have hardly been out of my thoughts. 



APPENDIX. CCXIU 

I was much mortified at my inability to serve you, but as 
I find you have had the required assistance, I can \yrite to 
you with greater satisfaction. 

" Let me hear oftener from you, my dear brother, and 
credit me when I tell you that every letter which brings me 
favourable intelligence of you, brings me real pleasure. 
I leave this place very early to-morrow for Netherby, the 
seat of Sir James Graham, son-in-law to the Earl of Gallo- 
way ; two of my pupils accompany me on a visit to their 
sister. The place is near Longtown, within ten miles of 
Carlisle, and almost a hundred from Galloway House. So, 
until you hear to the contrary, enclose your letters, as 
usual, to the Earl of Galloway. 

" I am persuaded you are not idle, for you must be con- 
vinced that nothing can be more contemptible than an idle 
clergyman. The wretched expedient, to which ignorance 
so often drives laymen, of introducing dogs and horses, and 
other frivolous subjects, and sometimes such as are less 
harmless and gentlemanly, to keep up what is called the 
spirit of conversation, should be of itself a most powerful 
reason to all for cultivating the mind : but a clergyman 
should always stand on higher ground, and should qualify 
himself as a fit companion for persons of sense and know- 
ledge, and as a pattern of learning, morality, and usefulness. 
The man who ought to know most ought certainly to be 
the most diligent ; and he who assumes the task of teaching 
others ought of course to know most himself. History, 
sacred and profane, next to divinity, claims the first place. 
With the study of the Scriptures comes in the study of the 
fathers, especially those of the three first centuries. Having 
made yourself acquainted with the knowledge of primitive 
antiquity, apply yourself to the writers on more modern 
history, such as Rollin, Gibbon, Robertson, &c, who, in 
connexion with some of the best theological writers, such 
as Pearson, Stillingfleet, Barrow, &c. w 7 ill furnish you with 
a rich variety of learning and reasoning, and will add con- 
siderably to your usefulness in your public functions. 



CCXIV APPENDIX. 

" Most books of consequence perhaps you may borrow 
from any of the country gentlemen in your neighbourhood, 
who sometimes consider it a compliment paid them to con- 
sult their library, but smaller and less costly works, those 
for constant use, you may purchase. 

" When studying history you should have a set of correct 
maps and good chronological tables before you ; for what 
signifies a confused heap of facts if you are ignorant when 
and where they happened. It is like the author who writes 
of the King of Bohemia's walking out one day by the sea 
side, when unfortunately it turns out there is no sea within 
some scores of miles of Bohemia. 

" With regard to your mathematical studies, you had better 
get Bonnycastle's Treatises on Arithmetic and Algebra; they 
may be procured for three shillings each ; or Vyse will do 
for the latter, as there is a key ; and you will find it less 
puzzling at first to have the sums ready worked to your 
hand. Although this is a noble science, and admirably 
adapted for fixing the attention of the student, besides 
supplying him with various rules relating to the arts of 
life, I would not recommend your applying yourself to it 
now unless you are considerably advanced in that branch 
of it which pertains to quantity, for it will interfere too 
much with more important things. But of the portion of 
it, technically called mechanics, hydrostatics, pneumatics, 
&c, which elucidate the nature and laws of motion, the 
power of fluids, the properties of earth and air, &c. no edu- 
cated man should be ignorant; while it enlarges the mind, 
it tends to excite our adoring gratitude to the great and 
beneficent Being, who is the author of those stupendous 
works of heaven and earth. 

" Be always intent on intellectual improvement. Let the 
first six hours of the day be sacred to study, then, by way 
of recreation, call on your parishioners, and visit the sick : 
and some part of the evening you may perhaps devote to 
good company, when you can find it, and improve it to 
some useful purposes. But a clergyman should never go to 



APPENDIX. CCXV 

a public inn, even for the society of an archbishop, unless 
on a journey, or unless some urgent occasion demands; 
and then he should remain no longer than that occasion 
requires. 

" I may possibly get away to see my friends next winter 
or spring, but I do not think it right to leave the family 
unless you were to succeed me ; of this you know your 
own inclination best : and from a letter written to you 
some time ago, you may form a guess what qualifications 
are necessary: it would afford me great happiness to oblige 
you, but I am anxious not to press you either way against 
your own bent. To-morrow will be my first journey this 
year. It is very late, and I must be up early. Adieu, dear 
brother, believe me ever yours, 

" E. Williams." 

" MY DEAR BROTHER, Galloway House, June 19th, 

"Though the dissolution of parliament has put an end, 
for the present, to the privilege of sending letters under 
cover, I entreat it may not prevent your writing, as I shall 
be impatient to hear from you. Excuse my troubling you 
after having so lately despatched a long epistle, but I feared 
that the intermission of franking might deprive me of the 
pleasure of your correspondence. 

" I trust you pass your time usefully and agreeably, un- 
mindful neither of your studies nor of your health. I 
cannot help thinking that a more methodical and extensive 
plan of reading and composing might be found profitable 
as well as entertaining. Suppose, for instance, you peruse 
Mosheim's Ecclesiastical History with attention, and Jor- 
tin's Remarks on the Study of the Fathers, &c, making 
your own observations on such passages as strike you 
most. What would you think of exercising your pen by 
condensing and modernizing Burnet's Exposition on the 
Thirty-nine Articles, or Archbishop Usher's Body of Divi- 
nity ? might they not be brought, at your leisure, to such 
a degree of perfection as, in process of time, to admit of 



CCXV1 APPENDIX. 

being published with credit and advantage to yourself, as 
well as benefit to the lovers of religion and learning? or 
perhaps it would be a more useful and less tedious exercise 
to write short annotations on various portions of the Scrip- 
tures, after the manner of Poole, but with the accuracy 
and elegance of Blair, if you could by dint of application 
make yourself master of his style. 

" Let me know the object of your present pursuit, and 
the usual direction of your studies. The classics, remember, 
should not merely be read through, but be weighed with 
great care until you have made yourself master of the senti- 
ments they contain, especially Cicero's Philosophical Dis- 
courses, Persius's Second Satire, Epictetus, and Marcus 
Aurelius, 'cum multis aliis quse nunc perscribere longum 
est.' These are amongst the best of heathen writers, and 
contain many valuable instructions that should not be passed 
over too lightly. 

" I hope you are by this time tolerably well acquainted 
with the lower branches of mathematics. If you can come 
to take my situation for a season you will find here a good 
collection of philosophical instruments, a good pair of 
globes, and an extensive library. As to divinity, I forget 
whether I recommended to your perusal Dr. Hammond's 
Practical Catechism, Dr. Prideaux's Connection of the Old 
and New Testament, and Dr. Newton on the Prophecies. 
These will certainly assist you much, and will put you into 
a fresh track of thinking ; but pay the most attention to the 
word of God itself, without note or comment, let that be 
your Polar star, remembering, that, ' Dulciiis ex ipso 
fonte bibuntur aquse.' Should I die before you, you will 
find a few sermons amongst my papers, which I will thank 
you to see corrected and polished, and (should you think 
proper) published by some respectable London bookseller. 
Should the Almighty spare my life, I may enlarge and 
revise them myself. But you need not take any notice of 
this now. Write soon. Any particularly literary intelligence 
from Oxford will be acceptable. What new publications 



API>EXDIX. ccxvn 

are talked of most ? What is the general opinion at present 
of White and his coadjutors V Yours affectionately, 

"E. Williams." 

" MY DEAR BROTHER, Galloway House, Oct. — , 1790. 

" Your letter would have been acknowledged sooner, but 
for my absence. I have been for some weeks sojourning 
in Edinburgh, ransacking old books, papers, and parch- 
ments, and am only just returned. I was present during 
the election of the Scotch peers, and had a good oppor- 
tunity of observing the whole ceremony. I regret to say 
Lord Galloway was not successful ; however, he is pretty 
certain of his seat, and should he ever fail in obtaining it, 
which is not expected, it will not matter much, as he will 
soon be made an English peer. 

" My thanks are due to you for your literary information. 
As I regularly see the monthly publications, I had read an 
account of the particulars you mention respecting Oxford. 
Mr. Croft is the person engaged in compiling an English 
dictionary. Afx,aiou$ is tne word in Joseph us which Mr. 
Huntery affirms to be applicable only to such foundations 
as were decayed and worn out through the injuries of time; 
while Mr. Burgess asserts that the foundations are called 
Afx°"oug in consequence of their removal, and in opposition 
to the Er£foi, or new ones. ' Who shall decide when doctors 
disagree?' It was reported that Dr. Owen had some in- 
tentions of publishing the Septuagint with various readings. 
In my opinion he would have executed it better than 
Monkhouse ; and I rather wished it for the honour of our 
college. 

" I shall always feel obliged for any literary news from 
the university or elsewhere, that you may pick up. I see 
something of the kind, it is true, in the periodical publica- 
tions, but you may hear many an anecdote that may not 
reach the public eye. Although my time is too much oc- 
cupied to join in the chase, (to use a sporting metaphor) I 
love to hear of the diversion, and the adventures of the 



CCXV111 APPENDIX. 

game may amuse, while an intention of engaging in the 
pursuit may not exist. 

" With regard to the £400. appropriated to your living, 
you cannot do better than lay it out in the purchase of 
land on good security, if any such should offer in your 
immediate neighbourhood. It is your duty, as a faithful 
steward to your successor, to exert yourself while in pos- 
session of the incumbency, to improve the value of it; and 
the trustees of Queen Anne's Bounty will be much better 
pleased, and will be more likely to think of Swinburn again, 
when they hear that the last donation has been so well ap- 
plied. In fact, an investment of money in the funds is not 
agreeable to their wishes ; for they are of opinion, and very 
justly so too, that a good and eligible purchase in land 
may benefit posterity, while the grant lying out at interest 
benefits only the existing proprietor. You had better send, 
as soon as convenient, an account well attested of your 
living, its duties, its annual value, &c, and your applica- 
tion will be punctually attended to in some shape or another. 
I need not tell you, that if any gentleman will give a 
sum towards the augmentation, the trustees will double 
that sum. My interfering would be of no avail, because 
they will as readily attend to your representations, and 
you may depend upon being aided in your turn, that is to 
say, whenever it falls to your lot. I am certain, as I told 
you before, of every assistance that can be given, but as 
that is no more than what you can procure, why should I 
put myself under an obligation ? My doing anything 
respecting Price will not at present be feasible, but you 
shall hear from me on the subject another time; in the 
meanwhile rest assured that your interest is not overlooked. 
" The eldest of my pupils* has left me for Berlin, ac- 
companied by the messenger from the British court; so 
that I was spared so long a journey at this season of the 
year, though I dare say I should have enjoyed myself 

* The Hon. William Stewart. 



APPENDIX. CCX1X 

much. He, poor fellow, seemed a good deal disappointed. 
I regret his departure, as he was of an age and disposition 
that enabled and prompted him to render study and appli- 
cation both entertaining and instructive. He had com- 
menced reading the higher classics with facility, and to 
converse on literary subjects with considerable propriety. 
He has written me a letter from Vienna, in which letter 
he expresses himself with a degree of gratitude and a 
warmth of friendship that has quite charmed me; and, as 
if the bare acknowledgment did not suffice, he must give 
me an additional proof of his sincerity by presenting me 
with ' Bruce's Travels to Abyssinia.' He is intended for 
the diplomatic and the military profession, which accounts 
for his being sent at present to Germany. 

" Much credit is due to the Bishop of St. David's,* for 
his very salutary regulations respecting candidates for 
orders. Too much caution cannot be used, and too much en- 
couragement cannot be given to men of real piety and learn- 
ing, especially in these times when the enemies we have 
to contend with are so numerous, vigilant, and able. I have 
a high opinion of him as a man, and as a scholar, as a 
divine, and as a controversialist, of which he has exhibited 
fresh proofs by his very able replies to Dr. Priestley. I 
have recently been reading his tracts, in answer to some 
restless innovator who would have the beautiful service 
of our church altered. He is suspected of having written 
the ' Apology for the Liturgy/ 

" The author, whoever he may be, defends our establish- 
ment cleverly, and vindicates our present translation of the 
Bible. He seems to agree with you in his opinion of Ken- 
nicott's performance. ' I would not be wanting/ says he, 
* in respect for his veracity and diligence ; but let me have 
leave to say, it has not been seen that religion or learning 
has been much the gainer by his collations/ Adieu. Write 
soon, and let me know what there is new, especially in your 

* Dr. Horseley. 



CCXX APPENDIX. 

religious and literary atmosphere. My duty, love, and 
compliments where due. Yours affectionately, 

" E. Williams." 

" P. S. A letter from my father has this instant been de- 
livered to me. He and all the family are well. He has 
just completed his edition of the Bible,* and seems in 
good spirits on the occasion. I mention this circumstance 
as I am persuaded it will afford you as much pleasure as it 
docs me." 

Page xxvii. line 27. " We will deserve it." 

" It is not in mortals to command success, 

But we'll do more, Sempronius, we'll deserve it." 

Addison's Cato. 

Page xlix. line 24. " Hints to Females in High 

Life." 

What grateful pleasure to revolve the page 
Which pictures woman's charms in every age, 
Tells us of all that Greece or Rome adored, 
Of the famed consort of Palmyra's lord, 
Of Arria's spirit, Agrippina's birth, 
Calpurnia's virtue, and Sextilia's worth, 
The realms Valvaria lost, or Fausta won, 
Or sad Octavia's sorrow for her son ; 
Admits us candidly, in each, to view 
The proper weight of praise or censure due ; 
What Prudence ever cautiously employ'd, 
Or here would imitate, or there avoid ; 
For faithful history, the fair one's friend 
(Pleasure the means, utility the end) 
Selects from each example what diverts, 
And Virtue's empire o'er the heart asserts. 

* The Welsh Edition of Canne's Bible with marginal notes. 



APPENDIX. CCXX1 

But thus, while history the fair would guide, 
Two beauteous sisters sparkle at her side ; 
Who each relation with precision grace, 
While one the period marks, and one the place ; 
This boasts the memory, to note the time 
When brave Masistas perish'd in his prime, 
While his wife's virtue sanctified his crime ; 
When chaste Panthea's purity was tried, 
When Sappho wrote, or Mariamne died ; 
When fair Roxana the arms of Beauty hurl'd, 
And vanquish 'd him who vanquish'd all the world ; 
That knows to trace, with accurate design, 
Each spot where laurels female brows entwine ; 
Where the stern mother bade her son return 
His buckler safe, or on a buckler borne ; 
Where Telesilla every danger braved, 
Her sex ennobled, and her country saved; 
Where Clelia shew'd, while struggling with the stream, 
Freedom and Virtue then were but the same ; 
Where Agarista rear'd the well taught boy, 
The muse's nursling, and the artist's joy ; 
Where Artemisia's wondrous tombs afford 
A proof, a widow once bewail'd her lord. 

9F *?P *?F 9F tP 

Yet Gallia boasts, among a world of weeds, 
Some plants, whose virtue for protection pleads ; 
The flowers, the toils of Fenelon produce, 
Not more design'd for pleasure than for use ; 
Crevier's forced fruits, and Dacier's foreign plants, 
And Boileau's posies from the Satyr's haunts; 
The bowers that shadow Sillery's retreats, 
And Rollin's parterre of historic sweets. 
These and a thousand other beauteous flowers 
Perfume the memory of the Gallic powers, 
And bear their fame on odoriferous wing 
W^here'er the Graces move, or Muses sing. 
* # # # # 



CCXX11 APPENDIX. 

Nor is the tongue immortal Tasso used, 

Which taste refined and elegance diffused, 

Unmeet, with pleasing harmony to bear 

The fair's soft sorrows to the tuneful ear : 

Who is not charm'd to see the enchanted maid 

Attend Arminta to the sylvan shade ; 

To hear melodious Metastasio tell 

How Io wander'd, or how Dido fell ; 

To view the strifes of Guienardine's age, 

Or Laura's beauty, or Orlando's rage ? 

Thence some new beauties still the language grace, 

The mind embellish, and improve the face ; 

While the taste, true and exquisitely nice, 

Knows to distinguish between wit and vice. 

V tP *a* n^ *fP 

Now turn the tuneful, now the historic page, 

The well piled riches of the Scottish sage, 

Where, in due order, all the treasure's stored 

Which Spain could spoil, or either India hoard ; 

Goldsmith's rich metal fashionably fine, 

And modest Leland's Macedonian mine. 

These guide the electric matter which supplies 

The dear dread lightning of destructive eyes: 

The bard who sung the empyrean seats, 

The groves of Eden, and her green retreats : 

The lively painter of the rolling year, 

Where every season's prodigies appear ; 

Young's moral muse, Eliza's luscious lines, 

Pope's syren song, and Parnel's just designs ; 

The mild instructive innocence of Gay, 

The walks of Shenstone, and the flights of Gray ; 

And courtly Addison, the Muse's care, 

And Steele, the guardian of the British fair ; 

And manly Johnson, virtuously severe, 

Whose satire never drew a guiltless tear, 

Whose polish 'd periods, like the shafts of Love, 

Please whom they wound, and whom they please improve. 






APPENDIX. CCXXlll 

Hence sparks of wit, as pleasing truths inspire, 
Fill the fair student's lovely eyes with fire ; 
These yield the enlivening spirit which imparts 
Immortal energy to mortal hearts. 

Jjp sjp ^fr SgE gp 

They best succeed their faces' faults to mend, 
Who to the root of every fault descend ; 
As those to boast the richest fruit are found, 
Who prune the trees and cultivate the ground. 

# # # * # 

Strive first to learn the honourable art 
To raise from earth to heavenly scenes the heart, 
For often dignity of thought we find 
Stamps on the face the grandeur of the mind ; 
Make, then, the joys of piety your care, 
Who think like angels, prove like angels fair. 



Page 1, line 13. " Two or three specimens of the 
text, and of the notes may gratify the reader." 

When James with bigotry and pride 

At will would guide the helm, 
Britain's best pilots stemm'd the tide, 

And saved the sinking realm. 

But faction clamorously wrong 

Essay'd to thwart their views, 
And taught the unreflecting throng 

Their guardians to abuse. 

Long they spun out the boastful tale, 

Their merits to enhance, 
Till time removed the flimsy veil, 

And show'd them bribed by France.* 

* Every real patriot must read with regret the names of Hambden and 
Sydney in the list of French pensioners bribed to favour the views of France, 
under the mask of opposition to the ambition of the minister and the 



CCXX1V APPENDIX. 

Believe not every well told tale, 
Trust not to outward show, 

The fairest flowers a snake conceal, 
A cliff the smoothest snow. 

Fair promises of firm support, 
A fallen cause to raise, 

Are easy steps to rise at court, 
Or baits to catch a place. 

The modes at public wrongs to rail, 
Or honour'd names to curse, 

Are juggles to escape a jail, 
Or fill an empty purse.f 

Despair not, though a foreign host 
The country's margin tread, 

But bravely fortify the coast 
With bulwarks of the dead. 



measures of the court ; and must wish either that Somerville's defence of 
the patriots of the day had been more successful, or that Barillon, the 
French Ambassador's account of his pensioners less accurate and less 
decisive. The events related by Barillon occurred, it is true, in the reign of 
Charles II., but events of a similar nature happened in the reign of his 
successor ; and some of the principal characters who appeared on the stage 
in the course of the revolution, are accused of private transactions behind 
the scenes, consistent neither with the parts which they acted, nor the 
engagements into which they had entered. 

f It may possibly be imagined that some of these ideas are too ludicrous 
to have been entertained with propriety by a person in the unfortunate 
situation to which the writer was reduced, at the period when these lines 
were written. But whatever inconsistency there may be in indulging in 
mirth, when suffering under the lash of adversity, it may be observed of some 
very eminent characters, that they were not deserted by their cheerfulness 
and wit, though forsaken by their good fortune and their friends. Sir Thomas 
More, when laying his head on the block, said to the executioner, with a 
significant smile, " First permit me, friend, to put my beard aside, for that 
at least has done no harm." And one of the alleged conspirators sacrificed 
to the ambition of the French convention, when kneeling to undergo the 
fatal operation, exclaimed with great indifference, " Chacun a son tour." 



APPENDIX. CCXXV 

How did our ancestors dispose 

Of the hostile fleets of Spain ? 
Their valour like a whirlwind rose, 

And whelm'd them in the main. 

Where now are Gaul's invading powers* 

Once raised at James's call ? 
The waves that wash'd their native shores 

Blush'd at their fameless fall. 

Page lxxiv. line 2. " Admirable effects in Scot- 
land." 

Unhappily a new system of education has since been 
adopted, and the consequences are, infidelity, immorality, 
and turbulence on the part of the people — a result which 
proves that such a system is not only defective as regards 
preparation for eternity, but immediately injurious to the 
interests of society. " It is known, but not perhaps so 
widely as it ought to be, that Scotland, which was long 
celebrated even to a proverb, for the morality of its popu- 
lation, has, of late years, exhibited a totally altered aspect. 
' It is a melancholy fact that the progress of crime has 
been more rapid in that part of the British dominions, 

* The Jacobites of the last century were at least as much the subject of 
conversation, and represented as formidable for their numbers and as dan- 
gerous for their principles as the jacobins of the present. The rumour of an 
invasion was as prevalent at that period as it has been in our days, but it 
ended in the total defeat of the French fleet by the allied squadron at La 
Hogue, and in the complete establishment of real liberty in England. How 
the present tumults may terminate it is not easy to foretell, but it is 
sincerely to be hoped that the generation of Englishmen who now inhabit 
the land of uncontaminated freedom have not degenerated from the valour 
and virtues of their ancestors, and that they are not to be deluded by the 
emissaries of disorder to barter away their possessions for empty promises, 
and their felicity for palpable insanity. Wat appears to have read Somer- 
ville's Transactions with some attention, and such are the reflections that 
appear to have occurred to him. 

q 



CCXXVI APPENDIX. 

during the last thirty years, than in any other state of 
Europe/ And, compared with this, it is a remarkable 
fact, that in Scotland, within the same period, there has 
been a more decided change from a religious to a secular 
education, than in any state in Europe. The education 
formerly given to the people of Scotland was part and 
parcel of their national church. The Bible and the As- 
sembly's Catechism were school books, and so intellectual 
cultivation and Christian training advanced in parallel 
lines. The result was a happy combination of religious 
intelligence, moral virtues, and provident habits. But 
since that system gave way before the rapidly increasing 
population of her great manufacturing towns, since pre- 
paration for success in the business of this life has become 
the main object, and the Bible has been, if not systema- 
tically withdrawn, yet practically neglected, the conse- 
quences have been just such as a scriptural view of human 
nature would have led us to anticipate." — Speech on the 
National Education, by the Rev. Hugh M'Neil. — Ed. 

The following letters may not improperly be introduced 
here: 

TO VISCOUNT GARLIES. 

" MY DEAR LORD, Galloway House, June 2, 1788. 

" While the beauties of the Mediterranean and the wonders 
of the East engaged your attention, I could not flatter my- 
self that anything from me could have been acceptable, and 
I forbore troubling you, while I was sensible you were so 
much better employed. One of the last things your lord- 
ship did in England, however, was to accept of a letter 
from me; and had I been furnished with the smallest 
portion of prescience, I should have contrived that the 
first thing done on your arrival should have been some- 
thing of the same nature, and I am not without hopes that 



APPENDIX. CCXXV11 

it would have been favourably received, as I am persuaded 
that your lordship's share of good nature did not suffer by 
the voyage. 

Caelum, non animum mutant, qui trans mare currunt 

has been often applied to those who brought home the 
same disposition with which they sailed ; and I believe it 
to be not inapplicable on the present occasion, as I know 
your lordship's goodness of heart to be proof against every 
climate. Be not mistaken, my lord, I did not intend a 
compliment. I sat down with an intention of giving vent 
to the effusions of my heart, and I have been betrayed into 
a truth, which, to anybody who is unacquainted with your 
lordship, might look like adulation. 

" When I took up my pen it was with the intention of 
saying, in a few words, what I could not conceal — that I 
was happy to hear of your safe arrival, and that I should 
be still happier to hear from you : as for the pleasure of 
taking you by the hand, whatever may be my hope, I 
cannot say I have faith enough to believe that it is what 
I shall soon enjoy. I rejoice, however, in the disappoint- 
ment, as it is occasioned by your lordship's promotion, and 
only wish that instead of one step, you could take two. I 
really think that he, who, after an absence of three years, 
gets sight of old England, and can immediately quit its 
shores to revisit the rocks of Gibraltar for the sake of a 
lieutenancy, deserves to return a captain. I am indebted 
to my Lord Galloway for the pleasing prospect he has 
opened to me of your lordship's further advancement in 
due time. I am now fully justified in my hopes of having 
the happiness to live to see you an admiral, but those hopes 
are not founded in any expectation I can have of enjoying 
a long life. 

" During the whole of your voyage your lordship sailed 
not unattended. While you were traversing the iEgean,, 
we were pursuing your track in the maps of Cellarius ; 
whjle you visited the coast of Asia Minor, we were going 



CCXXV111 APPENDIX. 

over nearly the same ground in the journals of Homer; 
and when you returned to the gentler regions of Italy, we 
were following the descriptions of the Mantuan bard, 

atque Italis longe disjungimur oris; 



and your lordship will allow that this may be, on some 
occasions, the least troublesome mode of attendance. This 
kind of travel, however, having had an amazing effect on 
William,* who was my principal companion during the 
voyage, for you will find him almost twice as tall as you 
left him. In fact, they have all grown so much that I 
question whether you will now be able to distinguish them 
without the expedient, which I remember you once pro- 
posed, of having a label affixed to each to prevent mis- 
takes. 

" They are all happy to hear of your safe arrival, and 
impatient of the pleasure of seeing you, but none more 
so than, my dear lord, your lordship's devoted friend and 
servant, 

" E. Williams." 

FROM THE EARL OE GALLOWAY. 
" MY DEAR FRIEND, London, June 8, 1790. 

" What with the war, the promotion of my sons, elections, 
the dissolution of parliament, which is to take place on the 
11th or 12th instant, my impatience for Garlies's return, 
together with many other occurrences not mentionable in 
letters, every thing here has been, and is still in the 
greatest hurry and confusion, and with none more so than 
myself. 

u By the accounts received this day, I am led to hope 
that (God willing) we shall soon see Garlies,+ which is of 
consequence. I have given in the names of two small 

* The Hoe. William Stewart. 

f His lordship's eldest son George Stewart, Viscount Garlies. 



APPENDIX. CGXX1X 

livings for your brother in Wales, on which the chancellor 
has promised to bestow attention, the first half hour of 
leisure that he has, but I fear it will be otherwise for some 
time^ 

" What you write to me r relative to my Stewart claim, has 
raised my hopes greatly on that score. I will endeavour to 
arrange with Mr. Andrew Stuart, f upon the subject of his 
giving us the meeting at Edinburgh. 

" He has called since I wrote the above, and is most 
anxious we should all meet there at the time specified. He 
leaves town for Weymouth to-morrow for his election, 
having been brought in there, on the most honourable 
footing, through the interest of his friend Mr. Pulteney.J 
I have perused, but not so carefully as I could wish, that 
part of Mr. Andrew Stuart's account of the Stewart family, 
which he brought me. He says that Sir Allan Stewart, 
who was killed in the year 1333, at the battle of Halidon, 
was succeeded by John Stewart his son, who fell at the 
battle of Durham in 1346, and that he was succeeded by 
his son John Stewart, of Darnely, who is referred to in the 
original documents, as ' Johan fils et heir seigneur John 
Stewart de Dernely.' He had a son named Robert, who 
died without heirs, and was succeeded first by Walter, and 
then by Alexander, who had heirs. This he proves by 
charters. But I have not proceeded further^ when I do, I 
will write to inform you what occurs to me as to the 
agreement or disagreement of your respective genealogies. 
He is of opinion that you leave out one generation, that of 
John, the son of Allan. 

" The king knows of our expectation in regard to Garlies 
Town Harbour, and speaks with pleasure of it. His ma- 
jesty has even seen the report, &c. which you have drawn 
up, and made many enquiries abou 1the author. 



\ Earl Galloway's opponent for the British Peerage, and author of " The 
Genealogy of the Stewarts." 

X Afterwards Sir James Piilteney, M. P, 



CCXXX APPENDIX. 

" Remember me affectionately to my dear family, and 
tell Georgiana, in particular, that on my return I shall hope 
to find her hold herself as upright as her sister Catherine. 

11 I am, my dear sir, in great haste, most sincerely yours, 

" Galloway. " 

" To the Rev. E. Williams, 
Galloway House." 



FROM THE SAME. 



" MY DEAR SIR, 



" Possibly, you may not choose to print off your pamphlet, 
though completed, until you come to London. In short, if 
it would not occupy too much of your valuable time at 
present, I should take it very kind, my good friend, if you 
would write your ideas and views on the subject above 
alluded to. For my own part, if I thought there was no 
risk of any new peers being made previously to the publi- 
cation of your work, I should be in no hurry ; but should 
parliament be dissolved as soon as some imagine, and 
there is every probability that it will, sooner than we 
expect, before your publication is known, the advantage 
hoped from it would in a great measure be lost. 

" All this family desire to join with me in kind regards, 
and I am, and ever will be, my dear sir, your faithful friend, 
&c. Galloway." 

" The Rev. E. Williams, 

4, James Street, St. James's Square, Edinburgh." 

FROM THE SAME. 

"MY DEAR SIR, Charles Street, 30th January, 1794. 

"Since the receipt of your very polite letter, the enclosed 
has been sent me by Mr. Young. I must own its contents 
surprised me much, as I am convinced from your general 
accuracy that the calculation you drew up in favour of 
Messrs. Robertson, &c. was a more equitable one ; and from 
the circumstance of Mr. Young's mentioning my having 
shewn his letter to you, I am persuaded he thinks so too- 



APPENDIX. CCXXX1 

I really am of opinion, that when public records, &c. are kept 
at the public expense, and large salaries are given to gen* 
tlemen for the purpose of facilitating the researches of the 
public, restriction should be laid on those who have the care 
of such offices, and their charges limited. When an illiterate 
person, or one who is unable to make the necessary research 
himself, saddles the entire of the labour upon the clerks, it 
would be but natural that a proportionable remuneration 
should be claimed : but when a person of erudition enters 
into the investigation himself, and gives no other trouble 
than obtaining access to such records, the case is widely 
different ; and to charge every document separately, as you 
will observe in the enclosed, and that too when j/ow alone 
have had the entire toil, a toil by the way for which I can 
never sufficiently remunerate you, appears to me out of all 
reason, and savours strongly of imposition. However have 
the kindness to decide whether they are entitled to their 
account or not, and favour me with such an answer as I 
can forward to Mr. Young, and I will instantly settle it. 

" I feel greatly obliged to you for the very accurate 
arrangement in which you left my papers, 8cc. with Mr. 
Young; should there be any other documents of conse- 
quence in your present possession, I will thank you to have 
them prepared, at your convenience, together with a note to 
Nish, if you have any hint you would desire to give with 
regard to the order of placing them, and I will direct them 
to be forwarded to Galloway. 

" Have you seen anything of Mr. Andrew Stuart lately ? 
Is he proceeding with his ' History of the Stewarts/ as he 
calls it ? and pray, does the death of my old acquaintance, 
Sir John Stewart, of Castlemilk, change his title, or is the 
title extinct ? I am, my dear sir, your faithful friend, and 
very obliged servant, 

"Galloway." 



CCXXXU APPENDIX. 



FROM THE SAME. 



" MY DEAR SIR, Trentham Aug. 2, 1798. 

" I trouble you with this note for the purpose of trans- 
mitting to you the letter which I had mentioned as having 
received from Mr. Bushby. Should you wish to write to 
him on the subject, you had better enclose it to me. We 
propose meeting on the 1 1th instant at Netherby, where 
it will find both of us. 

" I hope Lady Galloway has, before this time, procured 
from Mr. W. Spencer, 34, Curson Street, May Fair, my 
copy of Andrew Stuart's History of the Stewarts, and also 
the copy I lent him of your account of my family, both of 
which, I hope she has already sent to you. If not, I am 
sure she will, as I reminded her of it in my last letter. 

" I am, my dear sir, your faithful friend, &c. 

" Galloway." 
" To the Rev. E. Williams, 
42, Rathbone Place, London." 

FROM THE HONOURABLE CHARLES STEWART, 

(AFTERWARDS BISHOP OF QUEBEC.) 

"MY DEAR SIR, Culham Court, Aug. 12th, 1794. 

" As you have always shewn and expressed yourself desi- 
rous to oblige me or any of my connexions, whenever in 
your power, I have taken the liberty of informing you that 
Lord Blandford and I shall consider ourselves indebted to 
you, if you will use your vote and interest in supporting 
the election of the Duke of Beaufort for the vacant chan- 
cellorship of Oxford. Lord Blandford interests himself 
much in his grace's election, and we trust we shall not be 
disappointed of having your voice and influence in our 
favour. Among the many and great kindnesses which I 
have received from you, your support on the present occasion 
will be considered among the greatest by, my dear sir, your 
very much obliged and faithful 

"Chakles Stewart." 



APPENDIX. CCXXXlll 

" P. S. I hope ycm will pardon the brevity of this, and 
let me entreat that you will not pay me back in my own 
coin, although it would be no more than justice ; with your 
accustomed generosity, write me one of your long agreeable 
letters. All desire their kind regards. When shall we have 
the pleasure of your society here? C. S." 



FROM THE SAME. 

"MY DEAR SIR, Oxford, Dec. 11th, 1794. 

" Pray accept of my warmest thanks for your very kind 
letter, and for the good news and excellent admonitions 
which it contains. 

" I shall be at liberty after Thursday or Friday next, and 
I expect to be in London soon after, when I promise myself 
the pleasure of more of your company than I had last 
vacation. Believe me, my dear sir, it will afford me much 
happiness to do anything in my power to oblige you or the 
little stranger, who I hope is well. Be so good as to convey 
my kind regards to Mrs. Williams, and say I trust she will 
be sufficiently recovered to receive me on my arrival. 

u When I last wrote to town I requested that my bro- 
ther* would consult your and his own convenience relative 
to the christening of the little boy, and let me know the 
result of that consultation, as I should be entirely at your 
disposal; for you are aware that leaving Oxford a day or 
two earlier or later can make very little difference to me. 

" I attended Dr. Randolph'sf Divinity Lectures this 
term, and find them both useful and entertaining. I have 
got through, at my leisure hours, as you advised me, another 
book of Euclid ; and I am at present reading Cicero's 
Orations. These and other matters I hope to talk over with 



* The Right Honourable George, Lord Viscount Garlies, succeeded to his 
father's title and estates in 1806. 

f Consecrated Bishop of Oxford in 1799. 



CCXXX1V APPENDIX. 

you when we meet. In the mean time, believe me to be, 
my dear sir, with every feeling of respect and friendship, 
very gratefully and sincerely yours, 

" Charles Stewart." 

FROM THE SAME. 

" St. Armand, Lower Canada, 
"MY DEAR SIR, March 10th, 1813. 

"Some time in the year 1810 I was favoured with a letter 
from you, informing me of your promotion to the vicarage of 
Lampeter, by the Bishop of St. David's, as also expressing 
a wish that I would vote for Lord Eldon in the election for 
the chancellor of the University. I respect the bishop 
very highly, and wish much to be acquainted with him. 
As to the latter I cannot but regret that I was so circum- 
stanced as to be unable to comply with your wishes. My 
inability to answer your kind communication arose from 
the same cause, and I trust you will pardon my apparent 
remissness. 

" I beg leave also to acknowledge the receipt of a letter 
from you, dated July 30, 1812. I have to express my 
sincerest condolence with you on the loss of your wife, and 
at the same time my best thanks are due to you for your 
kind condolence with me on the death of my sister Sophia. 

" From your last letter I conclude you are still ignorant 
of my residence in this country. In the year 1806, I de- 
termined on prosecuting missionary pursuits. My diocesan, 
the Bishop of Lincoln recommended me to the Bishop of 
Quebec, who was then in England, and he pointed out the 
tract of country and the congregation destined for my cure. 
I sailed from Plymouth for Quebec, August 7th, 1807 ; 
landed at Quebec, Sept. 27th. Arrived at Montreal, 180 
miles from Quebec, Oct. 10th, and at Missiskoni Bay, St. 
Armand, Oct. 21st of the same year. There I have been 
ever since, without interruption, except going to Quebec 
once, to Cornwall in Upper Canada (80 miles from Montreal) 
once, and to Montreal, which is nearly 70 miles from my 



APPENDIX. CCXXXV 

house, once or twice a year. St. Armand is on the province 
line 45° and bounded on the west by Lake Champlain. 
I have been also 65 miles east in the new township, and 
once above 80 miles to the south, to Middleburg in Vermont 
State. 

"I have been blessed with remarkably good health, as 
well as many other dispensations of God's Providence and 
grace, for which I can never be sufficiently thankful, so that 
the promise in Luke xviii. 29, 30, has been confirmed to me 
as far as possible. The church is encreased as much as I 
could expect under my moderate abilities, and the many 
difficulties incident to a new country thinly and poorly 
peopled. The character of this new part of the world is 
very imperfectly understood by those who have not resided 
in it. The present war is a grievous calamity, but I imagine 
the enemy will not be able to conquer any part of the two 
provinces this year. 

" When I left home I had not an idea of remaining here 
so long without visiting England. I patiently wait the 
dispensations of Providence enabling me to return with 
propriety : but I hope to be in England before next winter, 
that is to say, if I can meet with a curate, which is my 
only great difficulty, and my present desideratum. When- 
ever I do return, be assured, my dear sir, I shall be most 
happy to see you. I flatter myself I can be more useful as 
a minister of the Gospel, in this part of the world than in 
any other. But I trust I am ready to go to any spot, and 
to do anything for the sake of Christ. May I express a hope 
that you preach and cultivate his free grace, and conse- 
quently that you grow in it, and increase it to yourself and 
many others; and especially to your own family. Wishing 
you this heartily, I remain, my dear sir, very sincerely 
yours, 

"Charles Stewart." 

"P. S. Two churches have been built at St. Armand 
through my instrumentality." 



CCXXXV1 APPENDIX. 

FROM THE HONOURABLE WILLIAM STEWART, 

(AFTERWARDS GENERAL STEWART.) 

" MY DEAR SIR, Netherby, July 29, 1790. 

" We arrived here last night by nine o'clock, and I have 
now taken up my pen in Sir James's* library, before any 
body is up, to write a few lines to you. Poor Susan enjoyed 
but little of her drive, as she was indisposed all day. I 
have not yet inquired how she is this morning. Neither 
was Harriet very well, as she was suffering from a severe 
cold. Within a mile of Longtown the fore spring of the 
carriage broke, we, however, contrived to reach that place 
without any further accident, here we got it fastened with 
ropes, which enabled us to get to the end of our journey in 
safety. Sir James has this moment made his entre, so I 
fear I must be more brief than I at first intended. May I 
take the liberty of requesting that you will send Daniel to 
Robinson's, in Prince's Street, for my regimental jacket, &c, 
and if not too troublesome, will you have the kindness to 
put them up in your box when you come. It is my inten- 
tion to keep good hours here, and to follow your good 
advice of walking out before breakfast every morning, now 
that I have left Edinburgh. I walked out four miles 
yesterday morning before breakfast to see Lord Napier's at 
Hardwick, it is a beautiful place certainly, but lies in a 
hollow. They are calling me to breakfast, so I must con- 
clude, with begging you will believe me to be, my dear sir, 
ever, yours very affectionately, 

"William Stewart." 

" P. S. I hope to write you a further account, if possible, 
of our journey, &c. to-morrow." 



* Sir James Graham, bart., who had married the honourable William 
Stewart's eldest sister. 



APPENDIX. CCXXXV11 

FROM THE SAME. 

Netherby, Aug. 2, 1790. 
"My last letter to you was written in such a hurry, owing 
to the succession of summonses from the major domo and 
others, for me to attend the breakfast table, that I fear it 
was scarcely either legible or intelligible, but your goodness, 
will, I am sure, overlook my numerous imperfections, as 
you have ever done on many occasions ; but whatever my 
imperfections may be, I hope sincerely, my dear sir, that 
want of affection, gratitude, and respect towards you at all 
times and in all places, will never be amongst the number. 
I promised to give you a further account of my journey 
hither, but on consideration I have little more of conse- 
quence to say upon the subject, especially little that is 
sufficient to repay you for the trouble of reading. Besides, 
I have since thought of that distinguished Roman general, 
of whom I used to read to you so much, if he could content 
himself and his friends with a ' veni, vidi, vici,' after all his 
noble exploits which are now to be reviewed in history, 
surely I should, and I suppose that breaking the spring of 
his carriage, w r as not one of his greatest adventures. 

" Since our arrival here nothing very material has taken 
place, unless we account as a remarkable occurrence, the 
bustle Sir James has been in for the last three or four days ; 
one of his tenants having been taken up for arson. It is 
in reality a long story and hardly worth repeating. How- 
ever, as it is the only news, I will briefly relate it to you. 
This tenant, it seems, took great offence, and indeed enter- 
tained a hatred to Sir James, because of a notice received to 
quit his farm. About a month ago the fellow took every 
thing of his own out of the barn and set the building on 
fire ; well, last Wednesday he carried his furniture out of 
his dwelling-house and set that on fire. Upon hearing of 
which, and the strong suspicions attached to the farmer and 
a woman, they were both taken up and brought to Ne- 
therby. We had justice here 'with his fair round 



CCXXXV111 APPENDIX. 

belly,' and lawyer < with spectacles on nose, and 

pouch at side/ looking wondrous wise, laying down the 
law ; we had also several witnesses for two days. At length, 
after much wrangling, prevarication,and perjury, the woman 
confessed that the farmer had employed her to do the deed, 
and that the fire was conveyed by a rush dipped in grease. 
In short both culprits are committed to Carlisle gaol to 
take their trial at the assizes next week. It is expected 
they will both be hanged. Do you think so, sir? I 
attended the last day of their examination. 

We leave the place to-morrow morning, and go direct to 
St. Mary's Isle, to see Lord Selkirk, where we are to stay 
till Saturday morning ; we shall return home that night. I 
shall be very sorry to leave Netherby. I walk out every 
morning before breakfast when it does not rain. Yesterday 
morning I walked about five miles before breakfast, along 
the winding banks of the Esk. I could not help drawing 
out of my pocket my friend Pope, and referring to several 
passages where he speaks of meandering streams and hang- 
ing woods. I enjoy myself exceedingly in this place, because 
I can take such delightful picturesque walks in the neigh- 
bourhood. The day before yesterday I walked about four 
miles down the banks of the stream, yesterday I walked 
up ; the views were charming. Last Friday I rode with Mr. 
Fergus, to a place called Penton, about five miles from 
Netherby, on the banks of the river Liddell, or rather 
Liddle, to see one of the most magnificent views of cascades,, 
hanging woods, and purling streams you can imagine, al- 
though the prospect is rather on a small scale, but much in 
the style of Corby, which you and I went to see about two 
years ago. We all visited it again on Saturday last, and 
my mother and sisters admired its beauties exceedingly, we 
made a complete day of it, for we left this place at 10 a. m. 
saw all the cotton manufactories at Carlisle, dined there, and 
then went to Corby, and returned by ten p. m. 

" I have taken constant exercise since I have been here, 
but I longed very much for you, which greatly damped my 



APPENDIX. CCXXX1X 

pleasure. It rained this morning, so I had not my usual 
promenade; but then I have an adequate pleasure in writing 
to my dear friend and tutor, who, I hope, finds Edinburgh 
more prolific, in agreeable society, than he expected. My 
mother received a letter from my father yesterday, wherein 
he mentions nothing very material. The former, with her 
kind regards, will be obliged to you to procure a correct 
account of the proceedings on the 24th, and send it to the 
latter : she says she will not scruple giving the clerk a 
guinea. Susan, also, with her kind remembrance, will 
thank you to desire Daniel to order Grant, the bow and 
arrow maker, to send the arrows, enclosed in a tin quiver, to 
Galloway House ; and, if not too much, I will also trouble 
you to remind the waiter at Dumbrick's hotel, to send my 
sword and arrows. When one is well and agreeably em- 
ployed, time advances ' cito pede/ — I recollect you giving 
me a theme to write on this subject — this is the case at 
present, for I forgot that the postman was waiting, so I 
have only time to add, that I am, and ever shall be, my 
dear sir, yours very sincerely, William Stewart." 

" P. S. Garlies joined Lord Howe the day before my 
father arrived." 



FROM THE HON. AND REV. GEORGE RUSHOUT, 

(son of lord northwick.) 

"REV. SIR, Northwick Park, Oct. 7, 1818. 

"Your very kind and consoling letter merited a much 
earlier acknowledgment; and, looking at the date, I am 
almost ashamed now to address you, or call to your re- 
membrance the scenes that are past, which time may, in 
some degree, have reconciled to you, and mitigated the 
first and most severe impressions. But when it pleased 
God to deprive me of my ever beloved Caroline, I was 
obliged, for many reasons, to relinquish a home once so 
dear to me, and take my little children to scenes where 
their minds might be a little diverted from the irreparable 



CCxl APPENDIX. 

loss they had sustained. My servants omitted to forward 
your letter, and it fell into my hands only a week ago, on 
my return home. And here I must be allowed to express 
my sense of the most invaluable instructions you imparted 
to the tender mind of my Caroline, in her earliest days of 
infancy. She always spoke of you with the highest gra- 
titude and regard, and attributed the great happiness she 
enjoyed in this life to the religious education she received 
under your care; and most gratifying indeed, my dear sir, 
would it have been to me, ever to have been allowed the 
opportunity of expressing the same to you in person. I 
have heard of you from various quarters, and should have 
been most happy to have been introduced to you. 

" I have enclosed a slight sketch of the character of my 
beloved wife, of which I was induced to print a few copies 
at the particular request of my friends and neighbours. 
It is mostly taken from the sermon that was preached by 
Mr. Watts the Sunday after the funeral : he knew her 
well, and was acquainted with all her worth — a life so 
spotless has met with its just reward. 

" I most sincerely condole with you in your domestic 
loss, and doubt not but such kindred spirits have, ere now, 
met, and exchanged the cares and anxieties of this life for 
all the joys of heaven. The goodness, the excellence of 
the departed spirits can form the only consolation to those 
that are left. I know I feel it to be a very hard task to 
reconcile oneself to the loss of what has constituted our 
chief happiness, but our duty urges us to do so, for the 
sake of those who are left behind; and I hope you will 
continue to derive support from those principles which you 
so early instilled into the mind of my Caroline, which 
made her life so contented and happy, and her death so 
calm and serene. That you may long enjoy all the conso- 
lations arising from this reflection, is the sincere prayer of, 
reverend and dear sir, your very obedient and obliged, 

" George Rushout." 
" To the Rev. Eliezer Williams, 
Vicar of Lampeter." 






APPENDIX. CCxll 

Page xcvii. line 24. " It was this spirit of in- 
novation that my father so powerfully combated." 

lt DEAR BROTHER, Lampeter, June 17, 1814. 

### a j nave b een involved in the present controversy, 
from indignation at seeing the Bible, particularly my father's 
edition, so disfigured and adulterated by false orthography 
and unwarrantable alterations. I would have attacked in 
the notes the alterations which I thought unjustifiable, 
but I foresaw that it w®uld involve me in religious dis- 
putes, if disputes can be religious. I therefore confined 
myself to the modern adulteration of the Welsh language, 
of late introduced, under the false pretence of reforming 
the language. It is indeed a reformation of it in one sense, a 
re-forming, or entirely changing the form of it ; but in my 
opinion, it is far from being a reformation, in the sense of 
an amelioration or amendment. The editor of the paper, 
under the signature of Llewelyn/ I am told, is one of my 
opponents, who, you know, is a Baptist preacher. ' J. J. of 
Bala/ is another, who is a young bard, and assumes the 
name of loan Tegid. He is a scholar of Price's, by whom, 
it is said, he is assisted. ' Hierael Haiarn Hir/ is some- 
body from your part of the country. There are several 
besides ; but I am told, that they are, pugilistically speak- 
ing, nearly giving in. J. I. has been on a recruiting march, 
soliciting assistance, but has met with very little success. 
Some informed him that they could not conscientiously 
afford him any aid, as they were of my opinion. I wrote 
the ode in praise of ' Seren Gorner' too hastily, without 
a grammar or an example before me, from an idea that it 
would give me weight with the editors of the paper, and 
that it would induce them to find a place for my compo- 
sitions. It may have had that effect in some measure, 
as my productions are always admitted. But some few 
errors in the Mesurau Caethion have unfortunately given 
Tegid and some of the minor bards a little temporary advan- 

r 



CCxlii APPENDIX. 

tage over me. I am willing now, however, to recover that 
ground if possible, and to flog them in verse as well as in 
prose. 

" Our little town will be in a blaze to-night. The Car- 
diganshire militia are returned home, and we are going to 
illuminate for the late news of our successes abroad. But 
I cannot say I am proud of the peace : we have given all 
to France, Russia, and Prussia, and have reserved to our- 
selves nothing but the honour of the thing. 

" Mr. Johnes, of Hafod, will frank this ; he is now in the 
room, and very goodnaturedly is waiting for me to finish 
my letter. 

"All the children unite in love and duty to you and their 
aunt, and in love to their cousin Harry. Your affectionate 
brother, 

* E. Williams. 

" P. S. Present my compliments to Mr. Garnons and to 
the Vicar of Caernarvon, when you see them, and to all 
friends around Snow don." 

The following letter to my father, from a well known 
Welsh scholar, relates to the same subject: 

" REV. SIR, Tremeirchion, near St. Asaph, Aug. 2, 1814. 

" As I have had it long in contemplation to trouble you 
with a letter, I have to lament that you should almost pass 
my door without letting me know it ; when you next visit 
this part of the vale of Clwyd, I trust it will suit you to take 
a view of its scenery from my cottage, and accept the best 
accommodations it affords during your stay here. 

As an apology for troubling you on this occasion, I have 
to observe, that the interest of our Established Church 
calls for the aid of your talents, in support of the Welsh 
Magazine. It is a work, which Mr. Evans, Llanbadarn- 
fawr, has repeatedly informed me the Bishop of St. David's 
is anxious to promote. Mr. Evans and myself agreed in 



APPENDIX. CCXllH 

opinion, that every precaution should be taken to secure 
its management in evangelical hands, i. e. such as could 
afford some security, in their own principles, of its real 
utility as a vehicle of sound instruction. It is a matter of 
considerable importance, in ray view, that we have some 
security in the character and judgment of its conductors, 
from the obtrusion of the new-fangled orthography of our 
intemperate theorists. Only Mr. Evans and myself have 
embarked in this concern as proprieters. I proposed to 
him, at the time we were arranging the plan of the work, 
that five clergymen of congenial views and sentiments 
engage in it as joint proprietors. He mentioned your name 
as an ally, whom he thought he should be able to engage ; 
and accordingly I would humbly beg to submit this pro- 
posal to your consideration, and earnestly solicit your 
compliance. The first number will be attended with some 
pecuniary sacrifice, but the subsequent numbers will not fail 
to indemnify all expenses, if proper means are used to force 
them into circulation. The editors have in some degree 
committed the clergy of the church of England, in an- 
nouncing it as a work conducted by them ; but I fear 
its pretensions to public countenance will not be duly sup- 
ported without a stronger firm. We are at a great loss for 
correspondents from South Wales. 

I had to undergo last winter inconceivable labour, in pro- 
curing a statement of the ecclesiastical occurrences of the 
diocese of St. David's, and after all failed of success, though 
I applied for them to all my friends in Cardiganshire and 
official characters in Carmarthen. I cannot but flatter 
myself that I shall be favoured with attention from you, 
that will more than counterbalance my former discourage- 
ments and disappointments from South Wales. Every 
consideration of regard for the credit and character of the 
clergy, as the effective ministers of religion, imperiously call 
for the services of their pens. The public in Wales have to 
acknowledge all their obligations for means of instruction, 
through the medium of the press, to our dissenting brethren. 



CCxliv A PP F.N IH X. 

The Calvinists support their magazine, Drysorfa, by the 
purchase of 2000 copies periodically. The Wesleyans 
print monthly 1000 copies of their Eurgrawn, and the 
Dissenters print 2000 of their Seren Gomer weekly. 
Unless the clergy be prohibited the use of the press by a 
parliamentary enactment, it is to be hoped they will not 
be wanting in zeal to cooperate in plans to make an in- 
creased use of it, and supply the members of their own 
communion with useful publications or means of instruction. 

The second number of Cylchgrawn Cymru I expect has 
been printed by this time at Dolgelley. I fear not quite free 
from errors. The third number ought to be put to press im- 
mediately, in order to effect the publication of four numbers 
before the close of the year. It has been judged advisable 
not to admit into the first numbers any article containing any 
personal reflections. A statement of all the proceedings of 
the Society for Christian Knowledge in South Wales would 
be an eligible article for the next number. It is also 
desirable that the superintendents of Mrs. Bevan's school 
should make use of it to report their proceedings. You 
may know of some Welsh literati whom you could influ- 
ence to become contributers to Cylchgrawn Cymru. Mr. 
Evans always informed me that your Bishop intended to 
support it with his literary contributions. We wished and 
hoped that in its spirit and execution it would follow the 
Christian Observer for its model. The new orthography 
that Seren Gomer obtrudes upon the public is to me a 
serious grievance. I fear the editors of that paper are so 
perverse that no argument can have any effect upon them, 
and therefore I wish that another paper could be established 
in support of the orthodox orthography. 

I have been thinking of proposing to the proprietor 
of our North Wales Gazette to enlarge his paper, and 
appropriate a page to Welsh : the Carmarthen Journal 
or some other paper may be capable of such an altera- 
tion in its plan. I wish you would take this hint into 
consideration. If you are the writer under the signature 



APPENDIX. CCxlv 

of Myrddin, in defence of our national orthography, I 
trust all the true friends of the church will ever unite 
with me in acknowledging the obligations we owe you. 
I had occasion to state in print my objections to William 
Owen's orthography. I left a copy of my pamphlet with 
Mr. Evans, Aberystwyth. I should be glad if you would 
give it a perusal. The ground of my charge against 
the new orthography as an evil, is the discordancy it pro- 
duces in the acceptation of words that occur in the church 
service. When the idea of negation is confined to the 
particle di, the words compounded with it in a positive 
sense will undergo a radical mutation in their acceptation. 
Our theorists are adopting a system of inconsistency. Every 
letter that was not originally Welsh they banish, and yet 
the y, which was originally only a Norman letter, they 
cannot sufficiently dote upon. It is common sense, and not 
any reference to antiquated or novel opinions or practices, 
that condemns mostly their theory. The use of accents 
was the practice of the dark age, and was exploded in the 
fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. 

I have now made some progress in the execution of my 
edition of the Welsh homilies : about sixty pages have 
been printed, and I intermit the further prosecution of 
the work until I have had an opportunity of ascertaining 
the opinions of the Welsh critics respecting it. The trans- 
lation of the Welsh homilies, I consider, as distinguished 
for the best specimen of Welsh. I want, however, to have 
your opinion on some points. I fear, I must have the first 
part reprinted ; I am anxious to learn whether you could 
do me the favour of procuring any subscribers for the work. 
I have the pleasure to remain, dear Sir, yours truly, 

" J. Roberts. 

" P. S. You will oblige me by favouring me with your 
pleasure, at an early opportunity, respecting the magazine." 



CCxlvi APPENDIX. 

Page cv. line 22. " It was customary for the 
senior pupils," &c. 

He also encouraged his senior pupils in the establishment 
of a weekly meeting, for the purpose of discussing various 
moral, historical, and scientific questions. It was called the 
" Pythagorean society," and was held in the school-room. 

It is to this juvenile meeting, perhaps, although it had 
been established only two or three years before my father's 
death, that some of those who subsequently distinguished 
themselves as public speakers, must in some measure 
attribute their skill in closeness of reasoning and fluency of 
speech. 

Page cix. line 11. " And followed them up with 
the Comedies of Terence." 

The exhibitions of 1815, 1816, and 1818, were thus 
noticed in the Carmarthen Journal :* 

" On Wednesday, the school at Lampeter broke up, 
when an exhibition of dramatic effort and classical acquire- 
ment a second time afforded entertainment to a numerous 
and highly respectable assemblage. Among them were 
observed several scholars of first-rate classical attain- 
ments, who united in expressing the most lively pleasure 
and surprise, at the performance of Terence's justly 
admired ' Phormio.' The principal characters, Phormio, 
Geta, and Demipho, were well sustained by Messrs. 
Thomas, Jenkins, and Jones ; indeed, the pronunciation and 
force of expression were well preserved throughout by 
the several actors. The afterpiece, ' Raising the Wind/ 
contributed to the amusement of the evening, in which 
the Jeremy Diddler of Mr. Watkin W. Thomas called forth 
loud and reiterated applause. It was understood that a 



* The Prologues and Epilogues, written by my father, will be found at 
the end of this -volume. 



APPENDIX. CCxlvii 

large party attended from Ystradmeiric School, evincing 
the proper respect and attention felt and paid on the oc- 
casion by the Rev. David Williams, although unable him- 
self to attend from indisposition. We cannot but feel 
peculiar pleasure, when we contemplate the effects which 
must accrue to this district from the facilities afforded to 
classical education by two such establishments, as it may 
be considered an undeniable aphorism, practically proved 
elsewhere, particularly in Scotland, that in proportion as 
the facilities and encouragements to liberal education in a 
country increase, in almost the same proportion will its 
prosperity be seen to follow as a necessary consequence." 

" Lampeter- School. — The representation of Terence's 
Comedy of Phormio, in the Town Hall at Lampeter, on the 
20th instant, proved very attractive ; and the heavy rain 
that fell on that day seemed to have no other effect than 
to cause an overflowing house. From the success of the 
young gentlemen of Lampeter School, on former occasions, 
great expectations of progressive improvement were excited, 
which they apparently completely answered, for all the 
audience, which was very numerous, appeared highly gra- 
tified and pleased beyond their hopes. Many good judges, 
who attended with the classical work in their hands, were 
surprised to find the young actors so perfect in their parts, 
so correct in their pronunciation, and so happy in the con- 
ception of their respective characters. The dramatis per- 
sons were — 

Phormio, Mr. W. W. Thomas. Dorio, Mr. Walters. 

Demipho, Mr. David Jones, sen. Cratinus, Mr. Jos. Davies. 

Chremes, Mr. Eliazar Evans. Hegio, Mr. John Jenkins, jun. 

Geta, Mr. John Jenkins, sen. Crito, Mr. James Griffiths. 

Davus, Mr. T. Jones. Sophrona, Mr. David Joel Jenkins. 

Antipho, Mr. W. Williams. Nausistrata, Mr. L. LI. Thomas. 
Phaedria, Mr. John Jones. 

" The grave humour and versatility of talents discovered 
by Mr. Thomas, in Phormio, proved him admirably adapted 
for so difficult a part ; and he was ably supported by his 



ccxlviii APPENDIX. 

facetious friend, Mr. Jenkins, in the witty and bustling 
character of Geta ; of each of them might it be said what 
the latter says of the former, ' Ego hominem callidiorem 
vidi neminem.' The strong traits in the characters of the 
old interested brothers, Demipho and Chremes, were 
happily delineated by the exertions of Messrs. Jones and 
Evans. Messrs. John Jones and Williams did ample 
justice to the characters of Antipho and Phsedria; Messrs. 
D. J. Jenkins, and L. LI. Thomas, in Sophrona and Nau- 
sistrata, by their acting, as well as by their antique and 
appropriate dresses, excited much risibility, and gained 
great applause. The representatives of the three counsellors, 
who assumed on this occasion enormous wigs and long 
robes, by their solemn looks and ambiguous answers, gave 
a laughable exhibition of the pomp, solemnity, and glorious 
uncertainty of the law. Mr. T. Jones, in Davus, and Mr. 
Walters, in Dorio, gained as much applause as those short 
characters would admit of. Upon the whole, the audieuce 
seemed to be exquisitely delighted ; and gentlemen of great 
respectability and judgment who were present, and had 
seen the piece acted under more favourable circumstances, 
declared they never saw it more correctly or more happily 
represented, and expressed highly their approbation of the 
conduct and talents of the young gentlemen of Lampeter 
School." — Carmarthen Journal, December 29, 1815. 

" The Town Hall of Lampeter was never more crowded 
than on the 19th instant, when curiosity attracted a pro- 
digious number of the inhabitants of the neighbouring 
districts, to witness the trial of several young gentlemen of 
the grammar school at that place. They were put on their 
trial on a suspicion of murder, and pleaded not guilty. 
The tide of popular prejudice, at first, ran very strong 
against them. Can any good come out of Cambria ? was 
the prevalent cry. Many witnesses were brought forward, 
of most of whom it was observed, that they made their ap- 
pearance without a subpoena. The principal charge against 
the young men was, that in some of their juvenile frolics 



APPENDIX. CCXlix 

they had wantonly maltreated and murdered severalof the 
offspring of one Terence, particularly on a late occasion, a 
favourite child of his, called The Adelphi. The accused 
employed no counsel, but left their actions to plead for 
them. Mr. John Hughes, an inexperienced young man, 
was strongly suspected of maltreating a singular old 
character, called Mitio, but it appeared in the course of the 
trial, that he had conceived a very correct idea of the old 
gentleman, and conducted himself, with respect to him, 
with great justice and propriety. Mr. Herbert Williams 
and Mr. Mathias were likewise accused of behaving very 
singularly with regard to two old gentlemen, called Demea 
and Hegio ; but no proofs could be adduced that there was 
anything improper in their language or deportment on the 
occasion, and it appeared that those old characters had 
been often more roughly handled. Of Mr. John Jenkins, 
sen. who had been found disguised, and who had assumed 
the name of Syrus, though he tottered a little upon one 
occasion, it was admitted that upon the whole he contrived 
to support his character in such a manner as to give general 
satisfaction ; and that if even his enemies were tu take as 
much pains as he did to pull down the wall, they would 
not be able to pull down his reputation. The conduct and 
deportment of Mr. William Williams and Mr. John Jones, 
with respect to iEschinus and Ctesipho; and of Mr. Watkin 
Herbert, with regard to Geta, in spite of every attempt to 
prove the contrary, was allowed to be such as was highly 
deserving of general approbation. With respect to Mr. 
Walters' treatment of Sannio, though it appeared that some 
blows had passed, nothing derogatory to his character could 
be adduced in evidence against him. It was alleged, that 
Mr. L. LI. Thomas and Mr. Henry Jenkins had taken 
great liberties with two old ladies, named Sostrata and 
Canthara ; but nothing could be proved against them, ex- 
cepting a little innocent juvenile gallantry, which, on due 
inquiry, seemed to redound much to their credit. Mr. J. 
Davis was accused of maltreating Dromo, but was acquitted 



CCI AI'PKNDIX. 

with honour. Master Davis was shrewdly suspected of 
having maltreated a Miss Pampella, as the young lady had 
been heard to cry out violently ; but her cries were proved 
to have been owing to a very natural cause, and it appeared, 
upon the whole, that the young gentleman had been guilty 
of nothing but what merited applause. In short, after a 
patient hearing of four or five hours, and a very impartial 
summing up of the evidence by the judges, the young 
gentlemen were all honorably acquitted, to the great satis- 
faction of a very crowded court. To conclude, it was 
proved, on a complete investigation of the business, that 
the young men, so far from murdering Terence or any of 
his offspring, had paid him every possible attention, had 
done him great j ustice, conducted themselves, with respect 
to him, with infinite propriety ; and that had all Romans 
been treated in this country with equal attention, our 
ancestors would never have been denominated inhospitales 
Brittani. If Horace thought it an honourable circumstance, 
as one of the judges observed, to be able to say of him- 
self, 

me peritus, 

Discet Iber, Rhodanique potor, 

why should it not be deemed equally honourable to Terence 
to have it in his power to say, 

me peritus 

Discet Iber, Tiviique potor ! 

When the trial was over, and the young gentlemen's 
characters completely established and declared unimpeach- 
able, Messrs. Hughes, Lloyd, Evans, Treharn, and several 
of their schoolfellows, who had distinguished themselves 
by their talents for music, performed * God save the king* 
and several popular airs with great correctness; and the 
taste and elegance with which they played the violin, the 
German flute, and clarionet, surprised and highly pleased 
most of the audience. The hall was decorated and 
adorned with sceneries and appropriate paintings, admirably 
well executed by Mr. Miller, Mr. John Evans, and such of 



APPENDIX. CCH 

the Lampeter boys as excelled in painting and drawing : a 
fancy view of a street in Rome, and a distant prospect of 
the Temple of Diana, attracted much attention. In the 
course of the evening the afterpiece of the " Lying Valet" 
was performed : whether this was satrically designed as a 
hint at the falsehood of the charges brought against them 
by their principal accuser, is not known ; but it was face- 
tiously observed, of Mr. J. Jenkins's acting in the character 
of Sharp, and in allusion to the suspicion of murder, &c, 
" There will be no murder if Sharp's concerned." The 
dramatis person ae were — 

Gayless, Mr. William Williams. Melissa, Mr. Henry Jenkins. 

Sharp, Mr. John Jenkins. Mrs. Gadabout, Mr. John Davies. 

Justice Gattle, Mr. William Walters. Mrs. Trippet, Mr. Alban T. Davies. 

Beau Trippet, Mr. Thomas Jones. Kitty Pry, Mr. Llewelin LI. Thomas. 
Drunken Cook, Mr. John Jones. 

" Some of the young men displayed uncommon talents ; 
and of their performance in general it may be fairly said, 
that if their acting did not rise to the highest pitch of per- 
fection, it was upon the whole considerably above medi- 
ocrity." — Carmarthen Journal, Dec. 27, 1816. 

" At the recent annual examination of the pupils at 
Lampeter School, the premium generally allotted to the 
best classical scholar was adjudged to Mr. John Jones, the 
son of Hugh Jones, esq. The prize for the best copy of 
Latin verses, on the beauties of the Spring, was won by 
Mr. Rice Rees, nephew of the Rev. W. J. Rees, Rural 
Dean of Melenith, Radnorshire, the subject taken from 
Virgil : 

Et nunc omnis aeger, nunc omnis parturit arbos : 
Nunc frondent sylvae, nunc formosissimus annus. 

" The premium for the most elegant specimen of Hebrew 
caligraphy was adjudged to Mr. David Lewis, and that 
usually given for the best abridgment of a sermon was 
assigned to Mr. Thomas Hassall, son of the Rev. Mr. 
Hassall, Paramatta, New South Wales. Mr. W. H. 
Miller, the son of Capt. Miller, of Llandovery, passed the 



cc 



lii Appendix, 



best examination in French and mathematics. Mr. Thomas 
had a premium for his great proficiency in psalmody ; 
and Mr. David E. Morgan, for his extraordinary skill in 
music, as well as for his assiduity and attention in attempt- 
ing to improve his schoolfellows in that pleasing science. 
After the examination, the recitations began before a select 
and discerning audience, consisting chiefly cf the friends 
and relatives of the young gentlemen of the school. Mr. 
John Lloyd fluently recited the 20th chapter of Exodus, 
and some of the Psalms, in Hebrew, with great correctness 
and Rabbinical precision. Mr. George A. Harris recited 
Miltiades' celebrated Address to Callimachus before the 
Battle of Marathon, from the Greek of Herodotus. Master 
Peter Bailey Williams recited four Odes from the Greek of 
Anacreon. Messrs. W. Rowlands, D. Morgan, and D. 
Griffith, jun. recited each three or four chapters from the 
Greek Testament. Messrs. William and David Davies 
recited the story of Pyramus and Thisbe, in Latin, from 
Ovid's Metamorphoses. Mr. W. H. Miller, the description 
of the Massacre of the Protestants on St. Bartholomew's 
day, in French, from Voltaire's Henriade. Messrs. Maurice, 
Atterbury, Evans, and Henry Jenkins, the scene between 
Juba and Syphax, in English, from Addison's Cato. 
Messrs. David E. Morgan, and Daniel Evans, Brutus and 
Cassius's Quarrel and Reconciliation, from Shakespeare. 
Mr. John Jenkins, Walpole's speech on Triennial Parlia- 
ments ; and Mr. John Hughes, Mr. Pitt's reply, from the 
Parliamentary Debates. Messrs. Henry Lloyd Harris, 
and Edward T. Prichard, the mode of Examining a Witness, 
from the Encyclopaedia of Wit. Mr. Thomas Jones, sen. 
250 lines from Dr. Young's Night Thoughts. Mr. Thomas 
Thomas, jun. Pope's sacred Eclogue of the Messiah. Mr. 
Rice Rees, Gray's Elegy. St. George A. Williams, the 
parting of Hector and Andromache, from Pope's translation 
of the Iliad of Homer. Mr. D. Thomas, sen. Address to 
the Deity. Mr. D. Thomas, jun. Antony's Oration over 
Caesar's body, from Shakespeare. Mr. Daniel Griffith, 



appendix. ccliii 

the story of Sir Balaam, from Pope's Poems. Mr. 
William Evans, the Duke of Gloucester's Speech to the 
Nobles, from Shakespeare. Master A. T. J. Gwynne, son 
of Major Gwynne, of Monachty, aged eight years, recited, 
with much elocution and correctness, about 200 lines from 
Addison's Poetical Works. Mr. Thomas Jones, jun. son of 
Hugh Jones, esq. Lampeter, repeated Gilpin's Equestrian 
Expedition, from Cowper's Poems, with great humour and 
drollery. Mr. Thomas Evans, a scene at the Payment of 
Tithes, from Cowper's Poems. Messrs. John Davies and 
David Jones, Hannibal's Address to his Soldiers. Mr. 
David Griffiths, Galgacus's animated Speech to the Britons 
prior to the Battle of the Grampian Hills, from Tacitus. 
Messrs. Hassall and David Jones, the dialogue between 
Owen Glendwr and Henry Hotspur, from Shakspeare. Mr. 
Evan Evans, one of Miss Bowdler's Sermons. Mr. Daniel 
Evans obtained a premium, and acquired great applause 
by the very animated and superior manner in which he 
recited one of Dr. Blair's Sermons. Mr. John Bowen, 
recited a Welsh Sermon, with great correctness and ani- 
mation, from the admired works of the late celebrated 
Evan Evans, surnamed Longobardus, or Vrydydd Mr. 
There were several other respectable recitations, as well in 
English as in the learned languages, which it would be 
tedious to enumerate; most of which were delivered with 
great propriety and correctness, and received with general 
applause. 

"After the recitations, Terence's favourite comedy of the 
Eunuchus was performed, by the senior gentleman of the 
seminary, in the Town Hall, before a very crowded and well 
informed audience, with admirable effect. Mr. John 
Jenkins, from his herculean stature, stentorian voice, and 
military air, appeared to be naturally calculated for the 
blustering character of the boasting Thraso, and went 
through the part with uncommon spirit, animation, and 
appropriate humour; Mr. John Lloyd was equally happy 
in his representation of the parasite Gnatho, and contrived 



Ccliv APPENDIX. 

to concentrate so much fun and comic oddity in the whole 
of his dress and address, that the house was in a roar of 
laughter whenever he appeared on the stage. Mr. George 
A. Harries was extremely lively, correct, and characteristic, 
in his representation of the pseudo-Eunuch ; and the whole 
of his performance went off with unbounded applause. 
His friend and schoolfellow, Mr. Hassall, having sailed 
some time since near the Malacca Isles, was able to dress 
him in the costume of a Malay chief, with an oriental 
turban or large bonnet, and a loose vesture, with a sash and 
dagger, which had an imposing appearance, and seemed 
well calculated to complete his disguise, and insure the 
success of the intended intrigue. Mr. John Hughes was 
very able in his delineation of the character of Parmeno, as 
was Mr. Henry Jenkins, in his manner of exhibiting the 
feelings of the youthful, but well educated Phaedria. Mr. 
Daniel Evans, as Antipho, was admirable in the scene 
between him and Chaerea, where the latter surprises with a 
ludicrous account of the happy success of his enterprise ; 
and Mr. Benjamin Evans, in the character of Chremes, 
especially in the drunken scene, and in his dialogue with 
Pythias, excited much risibility. But the best acting of 
the evening was thought to be that of Mr. W. H. Miller, 
in the character of Thais : he was extremely perfect in his 
part, and seemed to have formed a just conception of the 
character he had to represent ; and his dress, adorned with 
a profusion of artificial diamonds, and his elegant and in- 
sinuating manner, gave a striking picture of an artful 
courtezan of the superior order. Where all, however, went 
through their respective parts with so much excellence, it 
would be invidious to attempt to attract the rays of admi- 
ration to the brilliant merit of one. Mr. John Bowen, as 
Sanga, went through his part with great humour, and gave 
with spirit the comic sentence of ' where the spirit of the 
general was so daring, and the courage of the troops so 
great, I thought the affair (the siege of the house of Thais) 
would not terminate without bloodshed ; and therefore, I 



APPENDIX. Cclv 

concluded this (a napkin, his. only weapon in battle) might 
be useful, to wipe off the blood/ Suffice it to say, that the 
whole exceeded expectation; and that the other dramatis 
personam, Mr. Thomas Jones, as Dorus : Mr. John Davies, 
as Laches, an old man, the father of Phaedria ; Mr. Henry 
Lloyd Harries, as Dorias; and Mr. William Evans, as 
Sophron, an antiquated nurse, exerted themselves with 
great spirit, taste, and judgment, and succeeded in giving 
a happy representation of the characters allotted them. The 
young men are generally their own musicians, as well as 
their own scene-painters ; but upon this occasion, their 
best musical performers having parts to perform in another 
department, they were obliged to unite their resources in 
engaging an experienced band for the entertainment of the 
company. The scenes, however, were of their own paint- 
ing; and the view of Athens, with a distant prospect of 
the temple of Minerva, from an ancient tableau, by Mr. 
Miller, was viewed with general admiration. Having been 
prevented, in consequence of some lamented events, from 
acting this their favourite comedy sooner, they were 
thought, from delay, to have become more than usually 
perfect and mellow in their parts ; and several learned 
gentlemen from Oxford and Cambridge, who were present, 
highly complimented them on the correctness of their 
accent, the propriety of their pronunciation, and their 
general improvement, since they last had witnessed their 
performances. After the play, for the benefit of that part 
of the audience which was not conversant with the Latin 
language, the moral and popular afterpiece of " High Life 
below Stairs," was given in great style. The dramatis 
personae were — 

Freeman, Mr. Benjamin Evans. Lady Charlotte, Mr. D. Evans, 

Lovel, Mr. John Hughes. Thomas, (a servant) Mr. J. Lloyd. 

Robert, (a servant) Mr. T. Jones. A lame Fiddler, Mr. J. Lloyd. 

My Lord Duke, Mr. H. Jenkins. Philip, (a servant) Mr. J. Jenkins. 

Sir Harry, Mr. George A. Harries. Knighton, (a black girl) Mr. E. T. 

Lady Bab, Mr. St. George A. Wil- Pritchard. 

liams. Mrs. Kitty, Mr. John Davis, jun. 



Cclvi APPENDIX. 

" Mr. H. Jenkins and Mr. G. Harries moved through their 
parts with much mock elegance and laughable affectation of 
fashion. Mr. J. Hughes gave his part so high a colouring, 
and succeeded so well, that in the country boy, he was 
hardly recognized as the same person who had distinguished 
himself in Lovel. Mr. J. Lloyd's versatility of talent 
excited surprise." — Carmarthen Journal. Dec. 16th, 1818. 

Page ex. line 2. " An object almost of adoration." 

The arm-chair in which he usually sat when in school 
was purchased, after his death, by one of his pupils, who 
kept the precious relic in his study among the most valued 
of his treasures. On a particular occasion one of his 
master's sons attempted to occupy that chair ; the purchaser 
seized him by the collar and dragged him away, saying, 
" No, sir, nobody shall sit in that chair until he is worthy 
of your father.'' 

Page cxi. line 30. " Examination every year for 
the Easter prizes, 1 ' &c. 

These examinations were held on the Monday in Easter 
week, after divine service in the morning ; and a premium 
of twenty shillings worth of books was given to any one, 
under nineteen years of age, who should pass the best exa- 
mination in the Greek Testament, Epictetus, and Cicero's 
Offices. Premiums were likewise given for the best abridg- 
ment of a sermon, for Hebrew caligraphy, and psalmody. 
These classical trials of skill were wound up by a series of 
sermons, dialogues, and speeches, which generally attracted 
much company, and seldom failed to gratify the auditors. 

There were also exhibitions often pounds a year for the 
maintenance of the scholars, educated in any of the 
licensed grammar schools, for four years after the age of 
nineteen ; but no pupil was admissible as a candidate who 
had not obtained a premium at the Easter examination. 



APPENDIX. Cclvil 

The qualification was the best examination in the Greek 
Testament, Homer's Iliad, Epictetus, Cicero's Offices, 
Caesar's Commentaries, and any other classical author fixed 
upon by the electors. Grotius de Veritate Religionis 
Christians, Dr. Porteus's Summary of Evidences, and 
Burkhardt's System of Divinity were also used on the 
occasion. 

Four or five of the Lampeter scholars were generally 
successful competitors for these exhibitions. 

Similar examinations in the grammar schools in North 
Wales might be attended with incalculable benefit. 

Page cxii. line 13. " I have seven pupils apply- 
ing for orders this week," &c. 

The following was the course of the examination : 

Tuesday. Candidates with English titles examined in 
English reading and composition. Candidates with Welsh 
titles examined in Welsh reading and composition. 

Wednesday. To give written answers in English to 
written queries. 

Thursday. Latin exercises, and examination in the 
Hebrew Bible and Greek Testament. 

Friday. Examination in " Grotius de Ver. Rel. Chris.," 
" Burnet de Fide et Officiis Christianorum," " Clericus de 
Elegenda Sentential " Jewell's Apology," Nicholl's De- 
fensio Ecclesise Angl.," and the Articles of the Church of 
England. 

Saturday. To sign the Articles, &c. and to attend the 
Charge. 

Sunday. Ordination. 

Page cxiv. line 14. " The duties of a Christian 
soldier." 

" He that is great in arms is greater still 
If he be famed for just and holy courses/' 

Shakespeare. 



cclviii APPENDIX, 



Page cxxvi. line 28. " In Latin Sapphics." 

AD CELEBREM DOCTUMQUE CAUSIDICUM 
DOMINUM WARUM 

CARMEN SALUTANDI MUNUS FERENS. 

O ! potens verbis, studiisque legum, 
Quem sua cura coluere musee : 
Te colo votis, meri toque dono 

Lsetus honore. 

Fata te vultu videant benigno, 

Sit placens uxor, sobolesque pollens, 

Sint tibi culti, pia corda nati, 

Auspice ccelo. 

Mox tua fama resonet senatus 
Et tibi vatum bene cedat omne, 
Juris interpres patriae forique 

Seu decus audis. 

Seu sedes inter lepidos sodales 
Arbiter vini placid us cibique, 
Dum jocos spargit tua vox placentes 
More face to. 

Quin tibi musse placuit canorae 
Ardor, et cordi studiosa cura 
Nunc adest — cultus manet artiumque 
Fausta lubido. 

Inter insanas dubiasque lites, 
Inter serumnas variasque legis, 
Inter incensos populos, forique 

Jurgia diri. 
Inter abruptas ita rivus errat 
Cambrise rupes, amat ire et inter 
Saxa, per fractos tumidosque colles, 

Montis iniqui. 



APPENDIX. Cclix 

Crescit et turget, nova prata quserens* 
Jam per augustas ruit ille rimas, 
Jam jacit spumas, agit et superbe 

Flumen ad altum. 

Dura caprse balant, sonat atque voce 
Grex tenella errans ovium, pec usque 
Mugit arbusta inter opaca lsetum, 

Gramina carpens. 

Duui cadit torrens scopulos per altos, 
Implet et sylvas querulo sonore 
Cuncta gens ingens volucrum, palumbes 
Murmura fundunt. 

Pastor aut tentat modulari avena 
Carmen, aut nympham celebret venustam 
Valle jucunda, resonat canore 

Cimbrica chorda. 

Urbis excelsa3 # strepitum relinque : 
Non magis fumi placeant popinae, 
Wee foro lites populi calentis, 

Igne furenti.f 

Rus petas florens, humilesque sedes, 
Britonum campos et amasna tecta, 
Tivii ripas, fluvii sonari, 

Arvaque nostra. 
Vere dum vocalis adest hirundo, 
Adveni nostras, bonus hospes, oras, 
Fac tuo cunctos hilares lepore, 

Non sine risu. 

Te vocant una veteres sodales, 
Te vocant omnes citharis puellse, 
Te manet simplex epulumque vini, et 
Pocula laeta. 

* London. 

f An allusion to the " ignis civilis," or the disturbances that then 
reigned in the metropolis, — perhaps the Cato Street conspiracy. 



Cclx APPENDIX. 

Cambrise ruris genialis arva, 
Te vocant omnes precibus cohortes 
Quse colunt agros; tibi ubique pandent 
Hospita tecta. 



Page cxxxii. line 9. " On his return homewards." 
He thus sketches a part of his journey : 

" MY DEAR BROTHER, Lampeter, March 6, 1819. 

" The scene would have appeared to advantage, as we 
approached Llandegai, # if we had not parted from you, 
which threw a gloom over it. There was an appearance of 
industry, wealth, and elegance, that we had not witnessed 
in that part of the country. The hardy natives seemed 
remarkably active in their respective avocations ; some 
in driving their waggons along the railway, others in 
repairing their fences and cultivating their farms. The 
houses and fields in the environs, displayed every evidence 
of opulence and fertility, and Penrhyn Castle and the 
neighbouring seats exhibited a considerable degree of mag- 
nificence and neatness. A bird's-eye view of Beaumaris, 
glittering in the sun, reminded me of Naples, and with its 
thriving plantations and verdant lawns in the back ground, 
contrasted with the sombre aspect of the castellated ruins 
and projecting beach in the foreground, together with the 
shipping in the road, contributed not a little to heighten 
the richness of the landscape. It was very fine when we 
arrived at Aber, the sun shone, and the buildings round 
the place reminded me of an inn on the English road ; 
and I suppose Boniface had not neglected to profit by his 
travels, for no English innkeeper could have charged better. 



* Mr. W. and one of his sons, who was his companion, travelled across 
the country from Llanrug ; so that the beautiful view alluded to suddenly 
opened upon them, as they entered the post road, near the Llandigai turn- 
pike. Mr. W.'s brother escorted them as far as Pentir, and there parted 
from them. — Editor, 



APPENDIX. Cclxi 

The country in the vicinity of Aber formed a very striking 
contrast with the abrupt and wild scenery near Penmaen- 
mawr. The sky lowered, and ' like a dark ceiling stood/ and 
the rain began to descend in torrents, everything seemed to 
conspire to add to the terrific majesty of the aspiring moun- 
tain. As we ascended, it blew almost a hurricane, the sea 
birds could neither float upon the gale, nor trust themselves 
to the swelling surge, but were obliged to shelter themselves 
in the clefts of the adjoining rocks. We had revelled in 
the morning sunshine of the loveliest of God's works, and 
now, amidst the terrors of a mountain storm, which added 
to the effect, we were witnessing the grandest emblems of 
His power and wisdom. Those men, indeed, are not to be 
envied, whose bosoms, in the midst of such magnificent 
scenes, are not filled with the adoring admiration of the 
Creator's incomprehensible majesty. I could not help re- 
flecting how awful this mountainous pass must have ap- 
peared, when there was no wall between the road and the 
precipice hanging over the sea, when the path was narrow, 
and when the trembling traveller, according to my father's 
description, was under the necessity of leading his horse 
over rugged and slippery steps cut in the rock : the road, 
however, at present appears free from danger; it is only 
the beetling crags above, overhanging the passing traveller, 
and the foaming waves below, lashing the gigantic moun- 
tain's side, that render the scene tremendous. 

" As we descended into the next deep valley we were con- 
siderably sheltered from the storm, and as we trotted along, 
a small building on the road side threw open its doors, and 
a tumultuous crowd of school-boys burst forth in all the 
rude hilarity of rustic mirth : to them the storm seemed 
fun, and the shower a frolic ; and some of them, to show 
their agility, kept pace with the horses nearly a mile. The 
next hill appeared, if possible, more terrific than Penmaen- 
mawr, the rocks seemed steeper, and the ravines more 
deep, and though the distance intercepted us from the stun- 
ning noise of the boiling ocean, the roughness, the barren- 



Cclxii APPENDIX. 

ncss, and the magnificence of the perspective, seemed such 
as might have exercised to some purpose the pencil of 
Salvator Rosa. From the present direction of our route, we 
were considerably more exposed to the pelting storm and the 
driving rain than on the summit of Penmaenmawr. We 
were cold, and completely drenched. This, you will say, 
was enough to cool the ardour of a person going on an en- 
terprise of knight-errantry. 

{i A distant view of Conway administered at length some 
degree of consolation to us. I had fixed upon this place 
as my head quarters for the night, being in no degree 
dubious of finding here all appliances and means for 
welcome and refreshment. On our arrival we were directed 
to the best inn. The appearance of the harp suspended 
over the door seemed to promise us harmony, if not hospita- 
lity. After some vociferation, the ostler made his official 
bow, and our horses got under cover, and we were shown 
into a spacious room without a fire ! Chilled and wet as I 
was, this gave me some degree of warmth. I called with 
some impatience for the landlord : an odd figure presently 
made its appearance, and having learned the nature of my 
complaint, it informed me with great sang froid that they 
had no coals, and that there were none at Conway ; how- 
ever, he assured me they expected a vessel the following 
day, and, should it arrive, he gave me his word that he 
would use every exertion to procure fuel, and to make us a 
good fire ! This was but poor comfort to travellers dripping 
with the wet, and shivering with cold. I could not hear 
the story with the patience it was delivered, I must own ; 
and insisted upon it, that if there were a scarcity of coals, 
there could be no scarcity of blocks at Conway, and that 
I was resolved, conte qui coute, to have them instantly pro- 
duced, and a roaring fire made. Whether his nerves were 
shocked at the manner in which this demand was made, or 
whether he thought his own block in danger, he disappeared 
in an instant, and we saw no more of him ; but excellent 
materials of the kind required were soon collected, and a 



appendix. cclxiii 

capital fire " blazed upon the hearth." Having changed our 
dripping habiliments, and got them dried for the next day, 
we procured some odd volumes on miscellaneous subjects, 
and passed the remainder of the evening very comfortably. 
Our friends of the hostelry proved on the whole very civil, 
and by a few presents to the children, and douceurs to 
the retainers, we succeeded in effacing in some measure 
whatever unfavourable impression our first rough collision 
might have made. The smirking female waiter seemed 
diverted at the scene she had witnessed, and expressed her 
exultation at the lesson her employers had received for 
their improvidence. 

" The following morning opened upon us with one of her 
best spring smiles, and seemed to promise us a more flatter- 
ing reception than we experienced the antecedent evening. 
We made our exit at an early hour at one of the sally- 
ports, and regretted much we had not time to examine more 
minutely the venerable antiquities and architectural beauties 
of the place. We got on board the ferry boat # without 
difficulty. It was almost a dead calm ; the water scene was 
beautiful, Conway with its ivied towers appearing to the 
greatest advantage from the river. I forgot to state, that, 
by an odd accident, we met at Aber with a gentlemanf who 
had shown us very great attention while we were in Dublin, 
by the way, that very intelligent and well informed man 
to whom, I told you, we were introduced by our mutual 

friend, Mrs. M — G , and who escorted us to Trinity 

College, the Bank, and other public buildings. He was 
travelling by the mail, and was on his way to Liverpool. 
As the weather was very boisterous the preceding evening, 
and as I felt particularly anxious for the safety of my friend, 
I inquired of the boatman how the passengers got over the 
ferry. His answer implied, (for he spoke in Welsh) that 



* This was before the Suspension bridge was constructed, 
f J. Purser, esq. Rathmines Castle, Dublin. 



CclxiV APPENDIX. 

they had copious aspersions, but that there had been no 
immersion. This gave rise to several questions relative to 
the general safety of the passage, and the loss of the mail 
coach passengers some years since, when he informed me 
that there were only two saved, out of fourteen : on my 
asking him what had become of those two, he replied, 
' One of them, Sir, is since gone to his rest/ (i'w orphwysfa, 
as he prettily expressed it) ' and there is the other,* pointing 
to a little, spare, weather-beaten man, tugging with heart 
and main at one of the oars. We were soon landed, and it 

was not long ere we reached LI , where I did all I could 

to deliver your letter, but I could not meet with the lady ; 
I found the nest, but the bird had flown. Her residence is 
a neat box, in very good order. A decent servant having 
opened the door, I requested permission to leave my name, 
and was ushered into an elegant parlour, where, pen and 
paper being given me, I wrote a few lines, and took my 
leave. By a singular adventure, on my return to the inn, 
I came in contact with the sprightly lady whose agility you 
once so much admired. She does not seem to be as active 
in her motions as she once was, though her tongue appeared 
to have lost none of its wonted elasticity. She gave me a 
satisfactory account of the direction in which the bird had 
taken flight, and I determined to pursue. On my arrival 
at 1 found my friend A was not at home. How- 
ever, I endeavoured to avail myself of my having been a 
little before in the environs of the Liffey, if not the Shan- 
non, assumed a bold face, and introduced myself in the 
Hibernian style to Mrs. A . I was very hospitably re- 
ceived, and asked to stop to dinner, which of course I had 
not modesty enough to refuse. While dinner was getting 
ready I affected business and the necessity of delivering a 

letter on an important subject at R ; on my arrival 

there I met Captain on the lawn, in company with 

young A , to whom I was introduced. The Captain 

was remarkably friendly, and soon afforded me an opportu- 
nity of presenting your letter in person to the lady to whom 



APPENDIX. CClxV 

it was addressed, and while she is perusing it, I beg leave 
to pause." 



Page cxxxii. line 19. " Straitened circumstances." 

It is but justice to my father's memory to remark, that 
his pecuniary embarrassments were not owing to any ex- 
travagance on his part, for no man had fewer artificial 
wants, or lived less to himself. In his eleemosynary dis- 
tributions he exercised great liberality — that liberality 
which shows itself in the quiet acts of silent charity, 
allowing no interested considerations to stop his hand or 
stint his benevolence. He was, in short, generous to a 
degree of weakness, and many a poor wretch would have 
perished, but for his heart directing a hand 

" Open as day to melting charity J 1 

He was returning home one evening from a parochial 
visit, in an early part of his life, when he was accosted by 
a beggar, who made the usual representations of distress 
and hunger : my father, disbelieving his tale, and sup- 
posing him to be an impostor, did not relieve him. On 
the following morning, my father, hearing that the body of 
a stranger had been found in a neighbouring pond, went to 
see it, and discovered it to be the remains of the identical 
man who had applied to him for alms on the previous 
evening. This incident so affected his feelings, that appeals 
to him were never afterwards made in vain. But, alas ! in 
his eagerness to administer to the distresses of others, he 
often overlooked his own necessities, and distributed what 
perhaps, in the opinion of many, ought to have been 
reserved for his own family. Yet it was not in objects of 
this kind that his liberality was so apparent, to the detri- 
ment of his own temporal interests. His kindness of heart 
led him into greater imprudence. He would sometimes 
tender his bail in order to relieve his neighbour in distress; 



Cclxvi AIM* KXDIX. 

and this more than once proved the cause of much sub- 
sequent anxiety. In illustration of this, one instance out 
of many may be mentioned. A respectable and honest 
tradesman was arrested for debt, and the bailiffs were in the 
act of dragging him to prison : having tried all means to 
satisfy these officers of the law in vain, he had recourse, at 
last, to the " poor man's friend." My father happening 
just at that time to have by him a sum of money, intended 
for other purposes, handed it over to the poor man, and 
thus saved him from gaol, and perhaps from eventual ruin. 

Page cxliii. line 2. " Failed not to give them his 
counsel." 

Though there are no dates to the following letters, they 
seem to find here their appropriate place : 



MY DEAR 



" Now that you are removed from my immediate observa- 
tion, I can only follow you with my prayers and advice, and 
my earnest hope is, my dear boy, that they may be accom- 
panied by the Divine blessing. I do not like that you 
should be troublesome to anybody, but I should prefer your 

being, at V , to your being at W , and your 

keeping company with M. to your associating with W. E., 
as much good may be learned from the former, and nothing 
but mischief, I fear, acquired by passing your time with 
the latter. I wish particularly to impress this on your 
mind, not because the one is of higher family than the 
other, as you may perceive from what I have already said ; 
for aristocracy of birth is of small consideration, unless 
accompanied by that uprightness of mind and purity of 
conduct which would secure a boy against temptation, and 
prevent his doing a mean and unworthy action; but because 
habits of vice arid idleness, especially at your ductile age, 
are more readily formed than those of virtue and diligence, 
and because your future happiness will be affected in pro- 
portion as these qualities of the heart and mind predo- 



APPENDIX. CCI 



XV11 



minate. Knowing, therefore, that nothing can compensate 
for the contagion of bad example, I feel doubly anxious to 
direct you in the choice of your associates. Choose none, 
then, but such as fear God, remembering that ' he that 
walketh with wise men shall be wise, but a companion of 
fools shall be destroyed/ 

" In the morning, and at every hour when you are not 
engaged in good society or in useful enterprises, you 
should peruse some good book, or pursue some profitable 
study. Our time here is so short, that we should always 
improve it to the best advantage ; for your youthful years, 
you will find, will pass away to your regret, before you 
acquire knowledge enough to enable you to appear with 
credit as a man. ' Perdidi diem/ was the exclamation of 
a Roman emperor, when he recollected he had spent a day 
without doing some good. And Seneca says, that ' time 
is the only thing of which it is a virtue to be covetous.' If 
such were the sentiments of Pagans, what ought to be 
yours, who are recommended by higher authority, to ' re- 
deem the time, because the days are evil/ Be diligent, 
therefore, and be virtuous. Rise early, and read daily 
some portion of the Bible, or of the Greek Testament. 
Above all, be attentive to your devotions, morning and 
evening, for without this you can expect no blessing upon 
any of your employments. Some of the best kings and 
most illustrious heroes we have had have exemplified this 
truth in their lives, and it is to this that we must attribute 
the glory which our nation has attained above all other 
countries on the face of the earth. It is recorded of George 
II. that during the wars of that period, he would be in his 
closet between five and six o'clock in the morning, winter 
and summer, praying for the success of his fleet and armies ; 
and it is said that our present excellent king is a man of 
prayer, and devotes much of his time to religious exercises. 
History relates of Admirals Duncan and Harlborough, that 
they seldom entered an engagement without first invoking 
the aid and protection of the Almighty. In fact, numerous 



cclxviii APPENDIX. 

are the instances that I could mention of others, if time 
permitted, and of many distinguished literary men and 
preachers of the gospel who have prospered in their studies 
in proportion to their faithfulness in this duty; and if it 
were more attended to, perhaps there would be more peace 
and tranquillity in our country, and fewer errors of 
judgment in the writings of our authors. 

"But my paper warns me to leave off; indeed, I have 
written more than I intended, as I am at present much 
occupied ; but if you profit by what I have said, I shall 
consider myself amply repaid. Let secret prayer be con- 
stantly performed before you engage in the duties of the 
day, and let that prayer be always offered up in the name 
of your Redeemer, who is the only mediator between God 
and man. Endeavour to make Him your friend and pro- 
tector, and you will not be forgetful of your duty, to, my 

dear , your affectionate father, 

" E. Williams.'* 



MY DEAR 



" I hoped in consequence of what I said in my last, that 
I should have had the pleasure of seeing you at home to- 
day ; but I am disappointed, and I fear you tire out your 
hospitable friends by remaining so long at their house. On 
a visit, you should always contrive to regulate your conduct 
and your stay in such a manner, that people may wish for 
more of your company rather than wish you to depart 
sooner than you desire. I believe Mr. and Mrs. Harries 
are very good and kind to you, but you should not abuse 
their good nature. I shall expect to hear a favourable 
account of you when I see them ; be assured I shall have 
a full account of your conduct from some person or other, 
and therefore I hope that you will take care that that 
account may be to your credit. 

" I expect you will dedicate some part of every day to your 
studies, that you may not forget everything you have learnt. 
It is said of Alfred, king of England, that notwithstanding 



APPENDIX. Cclxix 

his many avocations as a monarch, he dedicated eight 
hours every day to his studies ; you have not quite so many 
things to occupy your attention as king Alfred had, and 
therefore there can be no hardship in your giving up a few 
hours daily, from your amusements, to the more useful 
employment of prosecuting your studies, and improving 
your mind. 

"Another attention you should not fail of paying yourself, 
(what I ought to have named first) while you study to im- 
prove your mind, is to study to improve your heart, by being 
duly attentive to your Bible and to your devotions. This, 
properly speaking, you cannot do of your ownself: it is a 
change of heart you want, and what you ought often to 
pray for, like the Psalmist of old, ' Give me a clean heart 
O Lord ! and renew a right spirit within me.' Your best 
protector is the Almighty, and you should not, at the least, 
forget to begin and terminate every day by thanking Him 
for his care, requesting him to preserve you from danger, 
and begging his divine influence to enable you to conduct 
yourself in such a manner as may secure your present 
comfort and future happiness. While you are thus careful 
in what may regard yourself, you should not forget what 
may regard others, by studying to behave yourself with 
politeness, civility, and attention to everybody : no person 
will ever love you or respect you if you behave yourself with 
rudeness and incivility towards those you converse with. 
Your conduct should always be tinctured with civility to 
the meanest individual, and with respect and great politeness 
towards those who are your superiors. You should not be 
inattentive to these things. You can behave yourself with 
considerable propriety when you choose it, and therefore 
you should endeavour to win the affection and gain the 
friendship and good opinion of every person with whom you 
associate. I should rather hear you were the best behaved 
boy, or the best scholar, in company, than hear that you 
are the best sportsman ; and should prefer hearing that you 
hold your knife and fork well at table, and behave yourself 



clxx APPENDIX. 

with elegance at dinner or at the tea-table, to being informed 
that you can carry a double-barrelled gun, or that you 
have shot an owl flying or a partridge on the wing. Where 
is the use of learning to charge an empty gun, if you know 
not how to charge or improve your mind ? or of carrying a 
full charged fowlingpiece, while you bear an empty head 
on your shoulders ? 

" I have lately heard from Sir George Staunton, a relation 
of your lamented mamma : when he was twelve years old he 
could write Latin, and even speak it, with considerable 
correctness ; at the age of thirteen he accompanied his 
father to China, and learnt the language of that country so 
well that the emperor noticed him, and was so pleased 
with him that he presented him with an elegant silken 
purse, which there is considered as a mark of great 
distinction. He was some years afterwards established as 
a supercargo at Canton, and had a salary of three thousand 
pounds a year. He staid there some years, and having 
made a considerable addition to his fortune, he returned 
home to inherit his father's title and estates, and is now as 
rich and as well informed a man as any in England. You 
see what may be done by diligence and good conduct. He 
was also a very affectionate boy, and there are many very 
pleasing anecdotes told of him. It is said that while on 
board the Ambassador's ship, Sir George Leonard Staunton, 
imagining that a French man of war was about to engage 
them, ordered his son, in Latin, to go down below deck ; the 
other hesitated for a moment, as if contending between duty 
and affection, and then firmly replied, * Mi pater, nunquam 
te desiram.' I should be proud to own such a son as this : I 
therefore hold him up to you as an example of diligence 
and of filial affection. If you love me you would do all in 
your power to become a good scholar as well as a good 
man, and be a credit to yourself and a comfort to, my dear 

, your affectionate father, 

" E. Williams. 



APPENDIX. Cclxxi 

"P. S. Present my remembrances to Mr. and Mrs. 
Harries, and Captain Miller, &c. I feel obliged to them 
for their kindness to you. I will send for you on Monday. 
All here unite in love. Caroline is better. I write in haste." 

Page cxlviii, line 13. " Some of his friends and 
pupils called." 

The following extracts from a letter, written a few months 
ago, are too deeply interesting to be withhold en from the 
reader : 

" As the Christmas vacation of 1819 approached, the 
subject of the memoir was visibly declining in health, and 
was occasionally absent from his post eight or nine days 
previous to the period fixed for separation. One morning 
when all had been assembled for an hour, waiting his 
arrival, a message was received from him, expressing his 
regret at being unable to attend, begging, at the same time, 
that the recess should commence on that day, and also 
expressing a hope of the pleasure of meeting again about 
the latter end of January. At this announcement there 
was a deep and impressive silence ; and in going out, each 
one observed to his fellow, ' We shall never see him here 
again !' Such a gloomy foreboding was verified by the 
event. 

a My season of relaxation was passed at Llanelly. I 
returned to my lodgings in the town of Lampeter, on the 
20th of January, 1820. On my arrival at the door, I was 
greeted with the intelligence, that the Rev. Mr. Williams 
was on the eve of his departure, that he had sent four times 
to inquire whether I had arrived, and that he wished much 
to see me. Of course a very short time sufficed to place 
me by his side ; he was sitting in an easy chair, alongside 
of a high writing desk, with his hand supporting his face, 
and was speaking earnestly to dumb listeners on the 
subject of the Psalmist's expression, ' the snares of death 



Cclxxii APPENDIX. 

have compassed me round about.' He then observed that 
I was in the room, and affectionately welcomed me, saying, 
' David Jones/ (the name by which he always familiarly 
addressed me) ' I am very glad to see you ; I have but a 
few minutes to live, and I am anxious for your welfare. I 
think you are destined to be useful in the church, and I am 
anxious to get you ordained sooner than the prescribed rules 
of this diocese allow. I wish you to go to Dr. Williams, of 
Cowbridge, in my name. I meant to write to him on the 
subject, but it is now too late. Tell him that I recommend 
you to him with my dying breath.' I begged of him to 
dismiss all thoughts of me, and apply himself to other and 
weightier matters: his reply was, ' I must think of my dear 
Saviour's work ; I can trust him ; I am dying, but I am 
not afraid.' Hearing the sobs of those around him, he 
said, ' My dear children, it was crying I heard you first, it 
is crying I hear you last ; you will go crying through the 
world, but I hope you will afterwards for ever rejoice.' 

u His auditory consisted of a worthy and still respected 
lady from the town, her youngest son, two or three ordained 
pupils, a young gentleman from London, and myself. Of 
course his children were there also. Late in the evening, 
(I forget the hour), after his speech had become a little 
impaired, and he continued conversing most interestingly, 
until he was much exhausted : I ventured to approach him 
and said, ' Dear Sir, take some rest and refresh yourself, 
and then you can speak to us again by and by ;' he replied, 
at the same time adjusting the pillow under his elbow, 
1 No, I shall not speak again. I will now lay my head on 
this pillow, and forget all worldly cares and anxieties, and 
commit my soul to the hands of my Saviour.' He then 
calmly reclined his head, and seemed to slumber with the 
ease of an infant in its cradle, I know not how long, when 
Mrs. Jenkins, the friend above alluded to, went up to him, 
and took hold of his hand, dropped it, and whispered, 'He 
is gone ! * 

" It has been my lot to witness the end of many, at home 



appendix. cclxxiii 

and abroad, by sea and by land, but never such a gentle 
breaking of the '■ silver cord ' as this ; never such a noise- 
less destruction of the ' golden bowl/ or the l pitcher at 
the fountain !' 

" Notwithstanding his imperfections, I believe that he 
lived the life of the righteous, and died the death of the 
righteous, and as such may my end be like his. Very 
truly yours, 

" David T. Jones."* 

Page civ. line 24. " More deeply lamented." 

The following tribute was paid to his memory, by one 
of his pupils, the Rev. John Jones, curate of Denbigh, then 
a youth : 

IN OBITUM ERUDITISSIMI ET VENERANDI 
VIRI ELIEZER WILLIAMS, A. M. 

LAMPETRIENSIS SCHOLJE PIUESIDIS CON DITO RISQUE. 

Quid fles ! alma parens ! Cambria nobilis 

Planctus mitte tuos ; plus nimio doles ! 

Non reddi lacrymis, non precibus potest 

Defunctus ; tumulo conditus invido. 

Multa laude recens heu bonus occidit ! 5 

Tu mecum potius carminibus piis 

Vatis concelebres egregium dec us. 

Te quocunque voces, Phcebe pater, sequar ! 

Nunc, O Musa potens ! flebilibus precor 

Aptetur, numeris nomen amabile. 10 

Fac ne longa dies et revolubiles 

Anni haec invidia munera diruant. 

Annates utinam tempus ad ultimum 

Virtutem memorent ; nam pietas jubet 

Inscriptum titulis corpus humo tegi ; 15 

* Professor of Welsh at St. David's College, Lampeter, and late chaplain 
to the Hon. Hudson's Bay Company. 



cclxxiv APPENDIX. 

Donee longa dies imminuit notas. 
Quid flemus? Periit nee tumido mari, 
Nee fatis dubiis occubuit miser : 

Ilium sed rapuit dira necessitas ; 20 

Multis ille bonis flebilis occidit, 
Nulli flebilior, quam tibi Cambria. 
O ! plorate bonis tu satis omnibus ! 
Te desiderio Wallia nobilis 
Multo prosequitur ; sed pietas nova 
Te lethi e tenebris evehit ad Deum : 25 

In ccelis merito muneribus suis, 
Te virtus onerat ; cum, mea Pieri, 
Spes nostras referas mentibus anxiis, 
Ccelestes iniit nullus adhuc domos, 
Sanctorum socius, dignior incola : 30 

Tali orbata tamen Cambria filio, 
Luges heu ! nimium victa, doloribus : 
Crines dilaniat Lampeter # hispidos, 
Tristi sistit aquas flumine Teucrobis,f 
Nam vatem audierat carmina dicere : 35 

Auctor Phoebe, precor, da mihi spiritum ; 
Indictum ore meo, num. patiar mori ? 
Grates tu meritis accipe debitas ; 
Factas, non statuas, artificis manu, 
Ponemus, memores non tabulas tibi : 40 

Munus carmen erit ; sit super additum 
Hoc carmen, titulo cum memorabili, — 
" En docti tumulus ! Vir pius hie jacet ! 
Rex vatum sapiens, J Pieri dum comes, 
Qui cunctis colitur, ipse Dei colens." 45 

" J." 
" Hyde Abbey School, Winchester, 1822." 

* Virgin-like. f Tivius. 

X In allusion to my father's appointment, as one of the judges at the 
Eisteddfod held at Carmarthen, in 1819. 



CORRIGENDA. 

Page iv, 1. 9, for " Llandiveilog," read " Pibor, near Carmarthen." 
14, for " Morgan Morgans," read " Morgan Jenkins." 
lviii, 30, for " Rhegett," read " Byged." 

cxix, 7, for " Mr. " read " .*' 

cxxvi, 11, for " Warren," read " Ware." 

' Pwysan," read " Pwysau." 

Sedjam" read " Sed me jam." 

gorau 'd," read " goreu o." 

Ddigwyddoda," read " Ddigwyddodd." 

iu," read " cei." 

Balan," read " Balant." 

Balac," read " Bale." 

Ysgythau," read " Ysgythan." 

Ysgythau," read " Ysgythan." 

hadanedd," read " hadenydd." 

Gortheryn," read " Gwrtheyrn." 
; Dwrodigwys," read " Dwrodrigwys." 

Cernywir," read " CernyTvyr." 

Brigantwison," read " Brigantweision." 

Can tine," read " Cantire." 

Coelbien," read " Coelbren." 

dicisive," read " decisive." 



119, 


11, for 


126, 


2, for ' 


144, 


8, for ' 


163, 


7, for ' 




9, for ■ 


191, 


22, for « 


192, 


3, for ' 


199, 


28, for « 




29, for « 




for' 


226, 


30, for ' 


227, 


22, for ' 


229, 


21, for < 


240, 


27, for ' 


249, 


32, for ■ 


268, 


22, for « 




26, for ' 



THE 



ENGLISH WORKS 



OF 



ELIEZER WILLIAMS, M. A, 



AN HISTORICAL ESSAY 

ON THE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES, 
PARTICULARLY THEIR MARRIAGE CEREMONIES. 



'T^HE ancient Druids, whose opinions are so little 
known, and whose ceremonies and religious rites 
are at present so imperfectly understood, never dis- 
played their attention to the exigencies of society 
and to the conveniences of private life, in a more lau- 
dable manner, than in the institutions which they 
introduced respecting the matrimonial union of the 
sexes. For, though we have not a correct account of 
the whole of their doctrines and established ceremo- 
nies, partial tradition and local customs have pre- 
served a sufficient specimen of them to enable an 
attentive observer to form a general idea of their 
ultimate intentions. The customs still prevalent at 
the celebration of marriage, and the more ancient 

B 



MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 



observances recorded in old manuscripts, or handed 
down by tradition, give a favourable view of the 
policy and address of the original legislators of 
the Celtic tribes, and afford very flattering proofs 
of their wisdom, and their knowledge of human 
nature. In order to render a state powerful, the 
increase of population is the favourite object of 
every prudent government. And to encourage wed- 
lock appears to be one of the most feasible me- 
thods of increasing the popular stores of a state, 
and of repairing the losses occasioned by epidemical 
diseases and by the depredations of war. Accor- 
dingly among the Celtic tribes, nothing more was 
required in the candidates for matrimonial happiness, 
than such a conduct and such a deportment in their 
respective stations, as should render them worthy of 
the patronage and protection of the community to 
which they belonged. Industrious habits, a sober 
disposition, and an amiable temper, rendered wealth 
and domestic felicity attainable by the meanest indi- 
vidual. For no sooner had a youth of good character 
secured the affections of a female of his own rank and 
of fair reputation, and no sooner had he expressed a 
wish to be matrimonially united to her, than some 
respectable personages, and not unfrequently the 
principal chieftains in the tribe to which he apper- 
tained, espoused his cause, exerted their influence, 
and had recourse to the most effectual methods of 
securing a general attendance of their retainers at the 
celebration of the marriage, and of raising by means 
of easy contributions such a sum as might prove suf- 
ficient to establish the young couple in a situation 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 3 

likely to render their future life comfortable and 
above the reach of indigence. To ensure a numerous 
attendance of the neighbouring tribes, games and 
athletic sports were instituted, and prizes of consi- 
derable value were promised to victors; and to ren- 
der the contributions made on these occasions as li- 
beral as possible, it was obligatory on the youthful 
couple or their patrons, to make an adequate return, 
whenever, on similar occasions, such return should 
be required. In consequence of these beneficial in- 
stitutions, the youths of the country were induced 
frequently to appear in mixed assemblies, and to 
engage in manly exercises, which softened their man- 
ners, and gradually prepared them for the fatigues 
and hardships of war; while, by these popular cus-? 
toms, they were led easily and imperceptibly to confer 
on their neighbours and fellow-countrymen such be- 
nefits and friendly favours as might, when repaid on 
similar occasions, contribute to their own comfort. 
When the nuptial day was fixed, the first care was 
to commission an eloquent messenger to visit the 
neighbouring castles, and invite the resident warriors 
and their attendants to the wedding. And in more 
peaceful days, the rural villages were traversed, and 
a general invitation was given to the ruddy and 
cheerful inhabitants to form a part of the company 
on the festive occasion. The Bidder,* in former 
times, was a person of a respectable and popular 
character, possessed of much eloquence, considerable 
talents, and an inexhaustible fund of mirth and rus- 

* See Cambrian Popular Antiquities, 8vo. p. 159. 



4 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 

tic humour. Herodrach, or the art of conducting 
an embassy, and carrying on important negotiations 
with propriety, was, among the Gauls, considered as 
one of the four-and-twenty games, which every young 
man who aspired to be regarded as an accomplished 
individual, was obliged to study, and of which it was 
incumbent on him to render himself complete master. 
In order to habituate themselves to a lively address, 
and a copia verborum, or a ready flow of easy lan- 
guage, the sons of the chieftains not unfrequently 
disguised themselves in the habit of the Bidder, and 
exerted their talents in haranguing the populace, and 
causing a numerous attendance at their retainer's 
wedding. And when the young lord succeeded to 
the estate of his ancestors, the villagers would often 
dwell with pleasure on the address which he had 
discovered, and the mirthful eloquence which he had 
displayed, in the character of matrimonial herald, at 
the time that he solicited their company at the nup- 
tials of one of his humble dependents. The herald, 
on these occasions, wore, as ensigns of office, his hat 
or bonnet ornamented with wedding garlands, and 
his staff decorated with ribands; and thus distin- 
guished, he might proceed unmolested through hostile 
tribes, and the camps of contending armies. 

" Suppliant the venerable herald stands, 
While Hymen's awful ensigns grace his hands; 
By these he begs, and, lowly bending down, 
He sues to all," &c. pope's homer. 

At the castles of the principal chieftains his con- 
stant ambition was to arrive just at dinner time, 
when the lord and his retainers were found assembled 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. O 

in the great hall, in cheerful humour and in high 
spirits; when rattling his Baton* against the floor to 
procure attention, and dropping a graceful bow, he 
began his harangue, " Cennad gwahoddwr, a gwa- 
hoddwr he/yd, at wr y Ty, a gwraig y Ty, a phawb 
or Tylwyth" &c. There was generally a prescribed 
form adapted to these purposes, but the orator in- 
dulged in occasional deviations from the beaten track, 
displaying his talents in mirthful sallies, and humo- 
rous parodies on celebrated passages from favourite 
authors. If the parties were of the lower order in 
society, he gave their pedigree with affected gravity, 
drew up a mock history of their exploits, and of their 
brave and generous actions ; expatiated on their per- 
sonal excellencies, and on the good qualities of their 
ancestors, descanted on the joys of matrimony, and 
the miseries of celibacy; and when he imagined he 
had succeeded in putting his audience into good hu- 
mour, he returned with great address to his subject, 
applied himself successively to the principal persons 
present, and endeavoured to extract a promise from 
them, which, when obtained, was regularly entered 
in his tablets. His reputation as an orator, and his 
reward as a Bidder, depended on the success of his 
eloquence, and on the number of promises which he 
obtained. When his oration was closed, the Hirlas, 
or silver-tipped Horn, was put into his hands foaming 



* Ei Bastwn, his Baton. The French and the Cambrians, in 
this and many other expressions, use exactly the same words. 
All the old words, or the Gaulois, the language of the old Gauls 
retained in the French, are the same with the Welsh. 



b MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 

with ale, or sparkling with mead. He thanked his 
audience for their friendly attention, drank their 
healths, and, with a bow, modestly retired. On the 
morning of the nuptial day the bride and bridegroom, 
privately attended by their particular friends, repaired 
to church at an early hour, when the ceremony was 
performed, and their title to the enjoyment of domes- 
tic happiness inserted in the usual records. On their 
return, the bride and bridegroom separated, and re- 
paired to the mansions of their respective friends. In 
the great hall they made their appearance, to receive 
the congratulations of their visitors. Considerable 
address was requisite, in order to recollect the names, 
and make proper inquiries after the families of each 
particular visitor; and when the youth or the inex- 
perience of the bride and bridegroom rendered them 
unequal to the task, they were assisted by friends of 
maturer years, who refreshed their memories, and 
guided their erring judgments. The names of the 
visitors were entered by a proper person in a book 
provided for the occasion, that, under similar circum- 
stances, the visit might be returned, and the amount 
of whatever compliment they left, might be faith- 
fully restored whenever it should appear to be re- 
quired. The tokens of friendship, or of neighbourly 
benevolence, which they determined to bestow, were 
deposited in a large silver dish provided for that 
purpose. It appears that among the Gaulic and 
Celtic tribes, previously to the invention of money, 
and its application to commercial purposes, things 
were presented in a kind of written promise, which 
it was deemed in the highest degree dishonourable 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 7 

not to fulfill. Something not dissimilar to this is 
mentioned by Tacitus, in his account of the manners 
and customs of the Germans. Describing the mar- 
riages of those people, he observes, " Inter 'sunt pro- 
pinqui, ac manera probant, munera non ad delicias 
muliebres qucesita, nee quibus nova nupta comatur, 
sed boves, et frenatum equum, et scutum cum framed 
gladioque" &c. The parents and relations of the 
newly-married couple attended to testify their ap- 
probation of the gifts that were presented ; gifts con- 
sisting not of luxurious delicacies, or bridal orna- 
ments, but of oxen, horses trained to war, shields, 
swords, and ashen spears pointed with polished iron, 
&c. Their congratulations on the happy marriage 
being made, and their offerings at the shrine of 
Hymen being presented, the company successively 
retired to an adjoining apartment, where, when the par- 
ties were opulent, seasonable refreshments were provi- 
ded, and where the fascinating powers of music were 
essayed. The harp and the viol have always been 
deemed favourite instruments in the hands of the 
Welsh ; its melodious sounds, its energetic expression, 
and its aptitude for accompaniments, rendered the for- 
mer peculiarly acceptable on these festive occasions. 
Accompanying the harp or viol with the voice in the 
choice compositions of the bards — singing pieces of 
music in four parts, and in full harmony — formed, 
from the earliest periods, the principal occupation of 
those, who, from years or feeble habits of body, were 
incapable of displaying their strength or their agility 
in manlier exercises. " Canu can pedwar accennu" 
or to sing pieces of music of four parts with a pro- 



8 



MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 



per air and accent, was reckoned among the four-and- 
twenty games, in which every well educated Gaul 
was expected to excel. Accompaniments in music 
were familiar to the ancient inhabitants of these 
islands, before they were known to the rest of Europe. 
A manuscript * of Welsh music still extant, and des- 
scribed by Jones, in his "Relics of the Welsh Bards," 
seems to place this subject in a luminous point of 
view. But until the gamut then in use can be de- 
ciphered, the merit of the music cannot be so well 
ascertained. To repeat the composition of the bards 
with accurate emphasis and proper gesticulation, 
called " datganiad pen pastiau" was likewise es- 
teemed a branch of bard ism, and one of the four-and- 
twenty games. The performer bore in his hand a cane 
or baton, with which he improved his action during 
the repetition. Sometimes he rattled it in cadence 
on the floor, to mark the time and add to the effect 
of his spirited delivery. By the energy of his manner, 
he frequently worked himself up into a paroxysm 
of enthusiastic phrensy, and sometimes succeeded in 
affecting his audience with similar rapture. These 
bardic declaimers resembled much, if we may judge 
from historic description, the rhapsodoi so much in 
vogue among the Greeks : and it was possibly as 
much by the art of the declaimer, as by the poetic 
force and fire of the composition, that the extraor- 

* The Cambrian youths went generally to the Italian Univer- 
sities for their education. It is probable that some of them 
carried copies of this work with them, and that Guido took the 
hint from it in the composition of his work on Counterpoint, &c. 
See Jones's Relicsof the Welsh Bards, 1st Edition, No. 18. 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. V 

dinary effects often mentioned were produced ; such 
as *Rhys Meigen's falling down dead on hearing a 
philosophic ode repeated which had been written 
against him by the celebrated Dafydd ab Gwilym. 
The games were divided into such as tended to the 
improvement of the mind, and such as were calculated 
to add to the strength and vigour of the body. Those 
persons whose naturally feeble constitutions, or whose 
age prevented them from entering the lists among 
the more athletic competitors for fame, contented 
themselves with exerting their talents to obtain ap- 
plause, and procure favour in assemblies of a less 
martial disposition. The domestic and literary games, 
or those generally in request in mixed assemblies^ 
were, 

1. Barddo?iiaeth, or bardism ; 

2. Canu Telyn, or playing the harp ; 

3. Darllain Cy?nraeg, or reading Welsh ; 

4. Canu cyivydd gandant, or singing a poem with 
the harp, or viol ; 

5. Canu cywydd pedicar ai accennu, or singing 
an ode of four parts, and accenting it with proper 
expression ; 

6. Tynnu arfau, or heraldry ; 

7. Herodraeth, or embassy; 

To which may be added the four inferior games : 

8. Chwarau gwydd bwyll, or playing chess ; 

9. Chwarau tawlbwrdd, or playing backgammon, 
or some such game ; 

10. Chwarau ffristial, or playing dice, or cards ; 

* See the Cambrian Biography, p, 306. 



10 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 

1 1 . Cyweirio telyn, or tuning the harp. 

Such were the games that were most in esteem in 
private assemblies and places of social intercourse. 
They are undoubtedly of great antiquity ; the nature 
of some of them is at present but very imperfectly 
understood, others are still preserved, and still prac- 
tised ; and it is the general belief of those who are 
most conversant with the subject, that an attentive 
perusal of such fragments as are still extant, of an- 
cient British history, and an examination of such 
passages in the works of the bards as casually men- 
tion them, would tend to remove many of the diffi- 
culties, and clear up much of the obscurity in which 
their history is at present unfortunately involved. The 
domestic games were in great repute, and to be 
ignorant of them was esteemed dishonourable ; but 
in active youth, when health, a favourable season, 
and a convenient opportunity, invited to manlier exer- 
cises, to consume time in such as are adapted to the 
capacity of those of a more debilitated age, was to be 
lost in sloth, and to renounce all claims to the cha- 
racter of a warrior. And when such athletic sports 
were pursued, to be absent from the spot, where com- 
petitors for gymnastic fame displayed their skill, 
was considered to be as reproachful in men, as being 
present on such occasions was discreditable in 
women. For the accommodation of the candidates, 
a field adjacent to the house where the friends of the 
bridegroom were assembled, was converted into a 
species of Campus Martius, where those who ex- 
celled in manly sports entered the lists, and those 
who were considered only as amateurs, were con- 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 11 

tented with attending as spectators. The games 
most esteemed at these matrimonial assemblages were 
such as tended to improve and display swiftness of 
foot, dexterity of hand, and vigour and activity of 
body : those regarded as the most reputable were : — 

EXERCISES OF ACTIVITY. 

12. Cryfder dan bwysau, or the display of strength 
in hurling a stone, or throwing a bar; 

13. Rhedeg, or running ; 

14. Neidio, or leaping ; 

15. Nqfto, or swimming ; 

16. Ymafael, or wrestling; 

17. Marchogaetli, or riding, which extended like- 
wise to feats in chariots of war, as described by 
Caesar. 

EXERCISES OF WEAPONS. 

18. Saethu, or archery, shooting, and throwing the 
javelin ; 

19. Chwarau cleddyf a tharian, or fencing with a 
sword and buckler ; 

20. Chwarau cleddyf deuddwrn, or fencing with 
the two handed sword ; 

21*. Chwarau ff on ddwybig, or playing with the 
quarter staff; 

22. Hela a milgi, or hunting, or more properly 
perhaps coursing ; 

23. Hela pysg, or fishing ; 

* There were other games ranked among the rural sports, 
which could not be well celebrated at matrimonial meetings. 



12 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 

24. Hela aderyn, or falconry. 
An account of these celebrated games may be found 
in several manuscripts of considerable antiquity ; and 
Dr. Davies has given a list of them in his Folio 
Welsh and Latin Dictionary, printed in London in 
the year 1632. The surprising similarity subsisting 
between many of them, and those anciently in estima- 
tion among the Greeks, will establish the fact so 
clearly as not to admit of a doubt, that they were 
originally borrowed the one from the other, or that 
they were at some remote period derived from one 
common source. It is well known that certain tribes 
of the Gauls in a very remote age settled in Galatia, 
and gave their name to the province which they 
selected for their habitation. The Greeks derived 
their games and several of their ancient customs from 
the Ionians, and those inhabiting different districts of 
Asia Minor. It is not improbable, therefore, that 
they were derived from the Gauls, settled in Galatia, 
who, by their valour and the success of their arms im- 
pressed the neighbouring nations with a high idea of 
their manners, customs, and institutions. The Ro- 
mans borrowed their games and gymnastic exercises 
evidently from the Greeks ; and it is remarkable that 
almost all their games, in which, according to some 
of our classical authors, the Roman youths delighted 
to exercise themselves, are the very sports which to 
this day constitute the principal diversion of the 
Cambrian champions. " Luctari, joculari, currere 
equitare, salire ad quce exercebat se Romana juventus 
in Campo Martio" are the words of a commentator 
upon our old friend Horace, in his notes on a passage 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 13 

descriptive of the Roman contests. The customs still 
observed in Wales would be a still better commentary 
upon such passages. The discharge from a mus- 
cular arm of the ponderous bar, resembles the hurling 
of the weightier spear ; and the display of corporeal 
strength, in raising and throwing to a considerable 
distance, stones of an enormous magnitude, is not 
unlike the feats which, in ancient days, when the 
fate of battles was decided by single combat, the 
greatest heroes were known to excel in, and were 
occasionally proud to practise, 

" Nee plura effatus, saxum circumspicit ingens : 
Saxum antiquum, ingens, campo quod forte jacebat, 
Limes agro positus, litem ut discerneret arvis. 
Vix Mud lecti bis sex cervice subirent, 
Qualia nunc hominum producit corpora tellus. 
Ille rnanu raptum trepidd torquebat in hostem 
Altior insurgenSy et cursu concitus heros." 

"Then, as he roll'd his troubled eyes around, 
An antique stone he saw, the common bound 
Of neighbouring- fields ; and barrier of the ground, 
So vast, that twelve strong men of modern days 
The enormous weight from earth could hardly raise, 
He heaved it at a lift : and, poised on high," &c. 

Running was likewise a favourite exercise among the 
Britons. It was patronized by the chieftains, from 
an idea that it qualified their people for war, as in 
consequence of their speed, the infantry could mix 
with the cavalry, and accompany them on forced 
marches, for several successive days; a species of 
warfare admirably calculated for light incursions on 
the territories of the enemy. Caesar describes certain 
tribes of the Germanic Gauls, who appointed a foot 



14 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 

soldier to each trooper, and became extremely formi- 
dable to their enemies by this extraordinarydiscipline; 
as the foot soldiers, by constant exercise, could swim 
the broadest rivers, keep pace in the longest marches, 
and stand the shock of the severest charge at the side 
of the cavalry, with whom they were intermixed, and 
to whom they were attached. 

The foot race is still in estimation, and many are so 
famed for pedestrian expeditions, that in a journey of 
three hundred miles, they have surpassed in speed 
the swiftest horses. Leaping has always been a 
diversion to which the Cambrian youths were much 
addicted, and by constant exercise so eminently ex- 
celled in, that in agility no nation could surpass them. 
" Neidio dwyjid a heol" to bound from field to field, 
over a road and two fences, is mentioned as a feat 
frequently performed. In these contests the com- 
petitors invoked the names of their favourite fair 
ones, and regarded themselves as equal, for their 
sakes, to the most difficult enterprizes. Einion 
having invoked the beautiful Angharad, sprang, in- 
spired by the thoughts of her, over the Aberno- 
dwydd,* a narrow dingle in North Wales. 

Neidiais a gyrrais heb un gorwedd, danaf, 
Wei dyna feistrolrwydd 
N aid favor , lliw gwawr, yn ei gwydd, 
Ar naid dros Abernodwydd. 

* This dingle is in width about fifty feet, and is situated a little 
below Plas Gwyn in Anglesey, the seat of the late Paul Panton, 
Esq. well known as the Maecenas of Welsh literature, and of the 
present Jones Panton, Esq. where to this day three stones, called 
u Naid Abernodwydd," may be observed, fixed on end to mark the 
distance, and probably the nature of the leap, a hop, step, and 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 15 

Fairest Angharad, for thy sake 

What feats could not I undertake ? 

To thee what could my course delay, 

What rivers could obstruct my way ? 

Inspired by thee, I fancy still, 

The broadest stream the narrowest rill ; 

And, like a hart, from ground to ground, 

Cross Abernodwydd at a bound. anon. 

Wrestling is still practised, and is in high estima- 
tion. The usual mode of displaying their strength 
or agility adopted by the combatants is that species 
of luctation which is so prevalent in Cornwall, as 
well as Wales ; and is generally known in England 
by the name of the " Cornish hugg," and among the 
Britons was anciently denominated " cwdwm cefn" 
The antagonist passed his right arm under his adver- 
sary's left, grasped him round the waist, fixed the 
knuckles of his fingers against his opponent's chine, 
and giving a sudden wrench to the right, and at the 
same instant dexterously striking him under the left 
ham, with the right knee, seldom failed to bring him 
to the ground. By art and experience a person of 
inferior size frequently succeeded against a gigantic 
adversary, a Ulysses against an Ajax. The other 
species of wrestling, which was less frequently prac- 
tised, was called " cwdwm braich" in which the 



jump. Einion, who performed this feat, was of the Treveilir 
family in the same county, and he has recorded the exploit in a 
short poem, in which he acknowledges having received the lady 
as the prize of his agility. His father and grandfather, Gwalch- 
mai and Meilir, were also of that family, and were celebrated 
bards, several of their compositions are still extant. See Cambr. 
Reg. I. Vol. p. 442.— Editor. 



16 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS Ol 

wrestlers seized each other by the arms, and when, 
in the course of the struggle, an adversary raised one 
of his feet, a timely and dexterous application of the 
right foot to the other generally succeeded in sup- 
planting and subverting him. To prevent brutal 
strength from wearing out less athletic ingenuity, the 
contest was confined to three struggles ; and to give 
two falls was to secure the victory. Shooting com- 
prized the art of aiming at a mark or target with a 
bow and arrow, as well as that of emulously con- 
tending for the honour of throwing to the greater 
distance a javelin or pointed dart. It was customary 
in former ages to propose valuable prizes for the 
encouragement of those who should prove expert in 
archery ; and at the present period, when the use of 
the musket has been substituted for that of the bow, 
a sheep, a flitch of bacon, or some prize of a similar 
nature, is often proffered as the reward of the best 
marksman ; the value of which, when not obtained 
from the liberality of the bridegroom, or the gene- 
rosity of his friends, is raised by the competitors or 
the spectators by a subscription among themselves. 
Throwing or darting the javelin was a favourite 
ancient exercise, considered as a useful preparatory 
discipline for those who would aspire to military 
renown, as well as a necessary accomplishment for 
those whose delight was the chase or the sports of 
the field. The spectators present at this exercise 
regularly ranged themselves in two rows ; the com- 
petitors stood at one extremity of these rows, and the 
object aimed at, or the mark to distinguish the place 
where the javelin fell, was fixed at the other, so 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 17 

that the lines were marked out for the champions, 
within which their darts were to be directed, as well 
as the object beyond which it was not expected they 
should be thrown ; circumstances that may serve as 
comments upon the practice of the Greeks, so puz- 
zling to many writers on Grecian antiquities. For 
whichever nation be deemed the most ancient, the 
similarity of the prizes, and the identity of the games 
cannot be controverted. The British chieftain, no 
less than the Grecian, instituted sports and proposed 
rewards to the victor ; 

" For these he bids the heroes prove their art, 
Whose dext'rous skill directs their flying dart." 

In modern days, the javelin, which is no longer in 
use, has been succeeded by the oaken staff. It is 
furnished with a club in the form of a cone, the base 
forming one extremity of the staff. When properly 
poised, and dexterously hurled, this ponderous club 
keeps it steady in its course, and gives it the appear- 
ance, as it flies, of a broad headed arrow. Some 
muscular young men from habit have been known to 
hurl it to an incredible distance, and to hit an object 
with great precision, at the extremity of a line of sixty 
or seventy yards in extent. Those who excel in this 
exercise have often distinguished themselves in the 
management of the three-pronged spear, and have 
pierced a salmon at a vast distance in the Tave,* or 
an otter swimming in the Teifi,* when likely to ef- 



* Rivers in Carmarthenshire and in Cardiganshire. The otter 
being an amphibious animal, ** Hela Dwrgi" or hunting the 

C 



18 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OK 

feet his escape from the dogs. Fencing was always 
considered to be an accomplishment indispensably 
necessary in a warlike nation. The use of the small 
sword was studied, and regarded as an object no less 
deserving of attention than that of the broad sword. 
But no weapons were in greater request among the 
Celtic tribes, than the sword and buckler, as they 
loved to wage no distant war, but to close and con- 
tend hand to hand with their enemies. Prior to the 
operation of the statute for disarming the inhabitants 
of the Principality of Wales, a Cambro-Briton seldom 
left his habitation without his sword and buckler, 
and a martial disposition, together with frequent ren- 
counters, rendered him ever ready and expert in the 
use of them. The Claymore of the highlands was 
no other than the Clecld mawr or Cltmawr of the 
Welsh, the Erse,* or Gaelic, being only a corrupt 
pronunciation of the language of the Principality 
of Wales. For the Highlanders having no books, or 
manuscripts, their dialect on the Celtic floated long 
on the varying surges of colloquial barbarism, with- 
out the compass of grammar or the helm of ortho- 
otter, was ranked under fishing, and considered as one of the 
four-and-twenty games, as was hunting the beaver, or " Helar 
Afangc" an animal formerly found in the lakes at the source of 
the Teifi, and said to be very numerous in Giraldus's time, about 
the year 1188. 

* Giraldus Cambrensis, and other authors, represent the 
dress of the Welsh as much resembling that of the Highlanders 
in the middle ages. They wore long trowsers, as in the Eastern 
Highlands, a short jacket, and a mantle similar to the Scots plaid. 
A kind of striped half-cloth, which resembles the plaid, is still 
used in Glamorganshire, and many parts of Wales. 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 19 

graphy to direct it, which became of course less 
certain in its tendency than those dialects that were 
always conducted by regular written rules. Since 
the Welsh have been prevented from carrying the 
sword and the buckler, the quiver and the bow, the 
oaken cudgel has appeared as the unhappy, because 
not the less destructive, substitute for the broad 
sword, and the youths of the lower ranks of life are, 
even in these days of civilization and Christian light, 
when occasion requires, as liberal in its use, as they 
are dexterous in its management. They defend 
themselves with great address, receive every blow on 
their weapon or on their left arm, and return the blow 
before their adversary can recover himself and be 
upon his guard.* The two-handed sword is at pre- 
sent scarcely known, but it was a favourite warlike 
weapon in the middle centuries. In the expedition 
of Lewis IX. to Egypt, during the crusades, A.D. 

* The generality of the lower ranks, even in these days, con- 
sider oaken cudgels as essential companions, and seldom repair to 
any places of amusement, such as fairs and weddings, &c. without 
them. Parishes would sometimes meet to try their strength, and 
where a private quarrel existed between two individuals of diffe- 
rent districts, it would be sometimes adjusted by a general 
combat. Some of our readers may perhaps recollect dreadful 
scenes of this kind occurring at the fairs of Tregaron and Lam- 
peter, where they might have observed some of the combatants 
conveyed to the surgeries in a condition truly horrid. They may 
also bring to their recollection that celebrated warrior yclept 
" Jacky'r Post," one of a family noted for this species of warfare, 
who, being an object of hatred to his enemies, and a marked 
man, seldom ventured abroad without his " Ffon Dderwen," 
which, like himself, was rather below the common size, al- 
though formed of amazing tough materials, he kept deposited 



20 



MAN NEKS AND CUSTOMS 01 



1249, John de Vassey, a French priest, armed with a 
scymetar of this kind, attacked a redoubt manned by 
eight Turks : " when near enough, he ran upon them, 
and with his two handed strokes put all the eight to 
flight, which valorous action rendered him famous 
throughout the army."* As much strength was 
requisite in the management of it, the ancient Britons 
prided themselves not a little in the exercise of it, 
and it was often seen in their ranks. It did not 
admit of the defensive aid of the buckler, consequently 
a considerable share of dexterity was required to 
parry the adversary's blows. The battle-axe, how- 
ever, appears to have been a more favourite instru- 
ment. Hywel y Fwyall,f or Howell with the battle- 
axe is described by the Welsh bards, as having com- 
manded a body of his countrymen as a corps de 
reserve, at the battle of Cressy, and by his seasonable 
advance, and thundering incursion on the French 
lines, to have materially contributed to the accele- 



in a left side pocket preparatory to any sudden assault. We have 
been eye-witnesses, in our schoolboy days, of an attack made 
upon him in a fray by three or four stout fellows, who seemed 
determined to improve their advantage of numbers by the violence 
and agility with which they assailed the helpless and unhappy 
wight, but, like a prudent warrior, he reserved his strength, par- 
rying their blows as well as he was able, until he gained what he 
called his vantage ground, when, making good his retreat to a 
neighbouring wall, he, like our old friend " Dandie Dinmont," 
applied his strokes so thick and with such deadly precision, as 
to display their huge uncouth carcases writhing on the ground 
together, the bleeding trophies of his superior prowess. Editor. 

* M. Savary's Letters on Egypt, vol. i. p. 360. 

t A piece of music called " Gwigill y Fwyall" is still played 
on the harp in South Wales. 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 21 

ration of the victory. The use of the "ffon ddmybig^ 
is not perfectly ascertained ; it has been translated a 
quarter-staff ] the management of which is too well 
known to need description. The justice of this 
translation may, however, be doubted, and, from the 
import of the original word, it might be questioned, 
whether it was not a short pike in ancient use, armed 
with a sharp blade at each extremity. The " ten 
gampwyr" or old champions, generally acted as 
umpires at these games, preserved order, prevented 
disputes, and acted as the 'Ayuvapyai or 'Paj3Sovo^uot 
of the Greeks. They seldom, when their fame was 
once established, entered the lists again, as they had 
little to gain, but might eventually lose every thing, 
by trusting their reputation unnecessarily to the cast 
of the die of Fortune. When to direct others it be- 
came necessary to handle their arms, they did it with 
very considerable dexterity, but without much ap- 
parent exertion, that they might seem not to put 
out half their strength, and have credit for a greater 
share of ability had they chosen to exert themselves. 
A twofold advantage was sometimes reaped by thus 
concealing the real extent of their natural prowess, 
and shading the lustre of their hard-earned fame. It 
is related, that a young gentleman of considerable 
property, who had betrayed great partiality for these 
games, had been so flattered for the proficiency he 
had made, that he imagined himself invincible, and 
conceived it impossible that any blow should be 
aimed at him with success. To establish his repu- 
tation on a still firmer basis, he challenged one of 
these veterans to contend with him in the manage- 



22 



MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 



ment of the quarter-staff, and offered him a lease of 
one of his farms then vacant, if he could aim a blow 
at him which he could not parry. The wary old 
champion for some time declined the contest, alleging 
it to be an impossibility to attack so expert a gladiator. 
But being importunately pressed, he, with some appa- 
rent reluctance, at length accepted the challenge, and 
soon obliged his youthful opponent to acknowledge 
him victor. " A gafjir lie, Meistr?" " And shall 
I have the farm, sir V ? said the veteran, " Cei, cei, dal 
dy law'r diawl ; di geir tyddyn" " Yes, yes, hold 
thy hand, devil," said the other, " thou shalt have it 
in perpetuity." To constitute a complete champion, 
it was necessary to obtain the prize, at each of the 
four-and-twenty games ; but to have contended suc- 
cessfully at some of them against men of acknow- 
ledged talent, was sufficient to acquire a name, and 
establish some degree of reputation. By constant 
habit and frequent observation, experienced cham- 
pions were able to give hints that would often con- 
duce to the victory of either combatant; and the 
party they seemed to support, if not ultimately suc- 
cessful, obtained the good opinion, and became, for 
some time at least, the favourites of the spectators. 
To obtain the regard and patronage of men of so 
much influence, was therefore an object of no ordi- 
nary consideration, with every candidate for fame at 
these exercises. A reproof from an old champion 
had an instantaneous effect, and a cry from him of 
Moesau, Moesau (les Mceurs, les Mceurs), calmed 
every rising tumult, and extinguished every nascent 
spark of animosity. Or, if any dispute could not be 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 23 

immediately adjusted, every appearance of anger 
was for the present suspended, and the decision of 
the subsisting difference deferred till the meeting of 
the parties at some more convenient place. Hence 
wedding feasts, which, from the nature of the games 
celebrated at them, might have been expected to 
resemble the nuptials of the Lapithae, were conducted 
with every appearance of regularity and propriety ; 
and if in modern times some corruptions have insinu- 
ated themselves, and some irregularities have pre- 
vailed, it is that the old champions have become less 
numerous or less popular, have lost their authority 
or neglected to exert it. It would be difficult per- 
haps at present to decide whether anciently among 
the Celtic tribes, there were any stated periods at 
which these games were celebrated, like the Olympic 
and Numean. But when reciprocal entertainments 
were established among the Welsh princes, these 
sports were always proposed for the amusement of 
the guests. In the year 1113, GrufTydd ab Rhys, a 
Prince of South Wales, and ancestor of the present 
Lord Dinefawr, gave at his seat near Llandilo, a 
public feast which continued for forty days, where 
all manly games were encouraged, and honourable 
gifts bestowed on all who were found deserving.* 
At every numerous concourse of people, the lively 
and active part of the community generally amused 
themselves in these exercises. At marriages parti- 
cularly, a spirited but amicable contest at the most 



* Cambrian Biography, p. 149. 



24 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 

popular games seldom failed to engage the attention 
of the young and enterprizing, the athletic and the 
brave ; the fields adjoining the house also where a 
wedding was celebrated, were covered with crowds 
of combatants and spectators, umpires and compe- 
titors ; and resounded with the vociferations of ani- 
mation, the shouts of approbation, and the thunder of 
applause. When the contributions were completed, 
the usual ceremonies observed, and the company 
ready to attend the bridegroom on his expedition to 
meet the bride, the signal to mount their steeds and 
to prepare for their departure, was given by the 
piper, who played on the occasion an appropriate 
and characteristic air on his pipes. In ancient days 
the piper was a man of genius, and a person of some 
consideration in his way. Colleges were established 
for the instruction of the youths who preferred this 
profession, frequent competitions encouraged, rewards 
bestowed, and degrees conferred, on the most de- 
serving; and no man was permitted to perform in 
public, who had not been regularly educated, and 
duly examined. Every chieftain had his family 
piper, and considerable emulation subsisted between 
the rival musicians of neighbouring lords. Several 
beautiful pieces of music were composed on this 
instrument by the professors of ancient days. The 
soft air called # " Erddigan y Pibydd Cock," or the 
Red Piper's song, and some others are still extant 
and are deservedly admired. In the hands of skilful 



Jones's Relics of the Bards, p. 61. 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 25 

artists the instrument* seems to have attained to a 
pitch of excellence that would now be hardly cre- 
dited ; a pastoral writer, describing the effects of 
this rural music in his time, thus addresses a piper : 

Os chwiban dy bib-goed, felus-geodd dan las-goed, 
O'r coed nifyn dwy-droed fyrid adre . 

Richards' Welsh Pastorals. 

When at a distance in the shade 
Some soft air on thy pipe is play'd, 
Charm'd at the fascinating sound, 
My feet seem rooted to the ground ; 
No more I think of home, but still 
Linger to catch some warbling rill. 

The piper's horse is generally as regularly trained to 
the business as his rider ; for, no sooner is he 
mounted, than he sets off on full career for the place 
of rendezvous appointed by the bride and bridegroom ; 
and as if privy to the arrangement, and determined 
to be true to the appointment, he never flags in his 
pace, and seldom deviates from the proper track. 
As for his master, his whole attention is directed to 
the management of his musical machine ; he there- 
fore rides in the Numidian style, " laxis habenis^ 
with loose reins, or rather without any reins at all, 
trusting more to the sagacity of his horse than to his 
own horsemanship. The animal, as if complete 
master of his business, and proud of his harmonious 
burden, flounders away with great spirit, " through 



* The bagpipes used in Wales, in general, are the large High- 
land bagpipes, but in Pembrokeshire and some of the adjoining: 
counties, the Irish pipes are in most repute, as they are in other 
places, for a private room, or for a dance. 



26 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 

dense and rare,' 1 and all the miry vicissitudes of the 
road. The melody of the pipes seems to have on 
the company, in some measure, the same effect that 
the verberations of the pan have in summer on the 
bees ; for they swarm round the musician, and wing 
their way with him with astonishing alacrity ; while 
he, as if delighted with the attention paid him, sits 
in great state, and beats time with his ponderous heels 
against the flanks of his horse. Either from the 
singularity of his appearance, or from the charms of 
his music, he seldom fails, in a short period, to be- 
come the centre of attraction, and the whole company 
soon seem to conglomerate around him with increas- 
ing adhesive force, till, at last, the whole moving 
body appears like a huge nucleus, of which the 
piper is the centre, and continues rolling along with 
prodigious velocity over hills and dales, without any 
regard to the nature of the ground, or the state of the 
road. The piper forms the centre of the system, 
while the other bodies, as if attracted and exhilarated 
by him, move round him, and attend him in his 
course. Some, like comets, fly off a considerable dis- 
tance in another direction, when the ground affords 
them room to expatiate, either singly to draw atten- 
tion, or in small parties to contend in swiftness, and 
shew the speed of their horses ; but all soon return, 
and discover that they form a part of the same system, 
and revolve round the same centre. The distance is 
often not less than ten or twelve miles, to the place 
appointed to meet the bride and her party, and as the 
horses are, with a few exceptions, of the pony-race, 
and the roads, in no very favourable state, it is a 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 27 

matter of astonishment that they should be able to 
move with so much persevering celerity, and reach 
the place of their destination within so short a period, 
as they are frequently known to do. It is natural to 
conclude, that in former days, from the nature of the 
institution, and the attention paid to equestrian exer- 
cises, as a necessary qualification for field-sports and 
warlike expeditions, their breed* of horses was of 
a superior quality, and that these matrimonial ex- 
cursions were more regularly conducted ; but at pre- 
sent, they are productive of more entertainment than 
utility, and attended with more danger than honour. 
But the riders discover great boldness, if not much 
skill, and the horses more strength and perseverance 
than many of a larger size, and greater beauty, as 
they frequently carry two persons, and move with 
surprising velocity, and considerable safety, over 
rough declivities, where more shewy ' studs would 
stumble at every step. At the first appearance of 
preparations to take horse, and hastening to form a 
junction with the party of the bride, the young men 
of an enterprising spirit, and of an active disposition, 
mounted their lively steeds, and proceeded with the 
greatest alacrity, on an expedition attended with as 
many difficulties, and frequently as many perils, as 
the Colchian expedition and the Rape of the Golden 
Fleece. Their object was to surprise the bridal at- 
tendants, bear away the bride in triumph from her 
protectors, and conduct her in safety to the bride- 



* See an account of Sir Rhys ap Thomas's fine chargers in 
the 1st vol. of the Cambrian Register, p. 122, &c. 



28 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 

groom. The spirited cohort engaged in this enter- 
prise were distinguished by the appellation of "gwyr 
o wisgi ocd"* or the men of the age of vivacity, and 
certainly few expeditions required more vivacity, or 
more boldness and agility. The attendants of the 
bride were in constant expectation of their approach, 
and the most active of them made every preparation to 
frustrate their designs, and disappoint their hopes. 
Every difficulty was early opposed to them, and every 
method not deemed dishonourable taken to obstruct 
them in their rout and impede them in their career. 
Straw ropes were fastened across the road, five-barred 
gates placed at intervals in the way, and where a 
passage was practicable through a river, the road was 
completely blocked up, that the youthful adventurers 
might at once discover their dexterity and excellence 
in horsemanship and swimming, the two most enter- 
prising of the four-and-twenty games. The most for- 
midable of the difficulties, however, invented to im- 

* They have of late years been erroneously called " gwyr y seek 
out" as if it were probable, that one half of their appellation should 
be in one language, and the other in another. They had no occa- 
sion to seek out the bride, they knew perfectly where she resided, 
and to seek out any thing else would hardly merit the bridegroom's 
thanks. The term seek out is but a modern appellation, and may 
be easily accounted for. It was the custom for the friends and 
retainers of the bride to conceal her in some unknown place so as 
to puzzle the bridegroom's adherents when they approached to 
search for her, but in consequence of a tragical event which once 
on a time followed this practice, it has of late years been abolished. 
The story runs that, from a wish to afford the parties more than 
usual merriment by increasing the difficulty of the search, it was 
agreed to conceal the bride in an oak chest that stood in the 
room. So successful was the joke that the privacy of the lurking- 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 29 

pede the progress of the adventurers in their rout was 
the " Gwyntyn"* which anciently consisted of an 
upright post, on the top of which a cross bar turned 
on a pivot; at one end of the cross bar hung a 
heavy sand bag, and at the other was placed a broad 
plank ; the accomplished cavalier in his passage 
couched his lance, and with the point made a thrust 
at the broad plank, and continued his rout with his 
usual rapidity, and only felt the gwy?ity?i, or the 
air of the sand bag, fanning his hair as he passed. 
Hence this dangerous machine was denominated the 
■" gwyntyn" and in process of time corrupted into the 
vulgar and well known expression of u qumtin" 
The awkward horseman in attempting to pass this 
terrific barrier, was either unhorsed by the weight of 
the sand-bag, or by the impulse of the animal against 
the bar found his steed sprawling under him on the 
ground. At no great distance from every obstacle 
designedly thrown in the way, a party was stationed 
to wait the expected events, and deride the fallen 

place baffled all the ingenuity of the bridegroom's friends. The 
search was abandoned, and they were preparing for their de- 
parture, when the young bride's friends having repaired to the 
place of concealment, melancholy to relate, they discovered the 
unhappy victim of their incautious frolic lifeless ! It was sup- 
posed that the chest in the hurry of the moment had been unin- 
tentionally fastened, and that from the tumult which prevailed 
her appeals for assistance had been unheard. This tale in its 
leading features is somewhat similar to an Italian story related in 
that beautiful poem " Italy " by Rogers, but whether or not 
founded on the same tradition I leave it to others better versed in 
Cambrian lore to decide. She scouts is another etymon given. 

Editor. 
* See Cambrian Popular Antiquities, p. 163. 



30 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 

riders, as well as those who unnecessarily attempted 
feats that required more consummate skill, and a 
greater share of agility than they could justly boast 
of. All who proved unsuccessful were considered as 
fair objects of ridicule, because no person was com- 
pelled to engage in these arduous enterprises, and 
no motive but unjustifiable vanity could induce men 
who knew themselves to be unequal to the task, to 
place themselves on the list of accomplished cham- 
pions, who had valour to undertake and abilities to 
execute the most arduous difficulties and the most 
hazardous enterprizes. 

" Ludere qui nescit campestribus abstinet armis y 
Indoctus pilce, discive, trochive quiescit, 
Ne spisscB risum tollunt impune coronce." 

" One that cannot dance, or fence, or run, 



Despairing of success, forbears to try." 

Those who thus insulted fallen and unsuccessful 
adventurers, were expected, if called upon, to per- 
form themselves the feats which they derided others 
for attempting in vain ; and it was reckoned base and 
dishonourable to oppose to others difficulties which 
they could not themselves surmount . The ' ' gwyntyn " 
was guarded by the most accomplished champions of 
the party, for they were obliged, if called upon, to 
pass it themselves at full career, and if challenged by 
one of the adventurers, they were required to contend 
with them at one of the four-and-twenty games, and 
if vanquished became themselves the objects of rail- 
lery and popular invective. Hence " cadiv gwyntyn" 
or to guard a quintin, was esteemed a most formid- 
able enterprise. It sometimes happened that the 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 31 

youthful adventurers overcame all these obstacles, or 
made their appearance before they were interposed in 
their way, when having arrived near the habitation 
of the bride, they galloped impetuously to the door, 
dismounted and endeavoured to bear off the bride, ere 
their opponents could be aware of their arrival, or pre- 
pared to resist them. But, if not surprised by their 
sudden irruption, the attendants of the bride shut 
the door against them. They could then entertain 
no hopes of admission but by the efforts of an extem- 
porary song, which was instantly retorted by their 
opponents from within. To play a prelude on the 
harp and compose readily a poetical impromptu was 
considered by every champion in those chivalrous 
times as a necessary qualification. They were there- 
fore particularly expert at these rythmical encounters, 
which were likely to continue for some time, if a 
lucky epigrammatic turn, or some sarcastic stanza did 
not happen to surprise and disconcert their oppo- 
nents, thereby rendering them incapable of returning 
an immediate answer, when by the laws of the game 
the doors were to be thrown open and the victorious 
assailants instantly admitted. To effect this, much 
raillery and much personal invective were often used ; 
which compliments were not less liberally returned 
by the adverse party ; and when the voice of any of 
those within was recognised, he was instantly ac- 
costed with some humourous satire, which might 
tend to raise a laugh and put a stop to the poetical 
effusions of his party. It is related that on one of 
these occasions the voice of a person shrewdly sus- 
pected of sheep-stealing was recognised among the 



32 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS ()l 

bridal attendants, when one of the assailants recited 
or sung the following epigram : 

Gwrando lleidr hoyw'r ddafad, 
Ai ti sydd yma heddyw'li geidwad? 
Ai dynar rheswm am gaur drysau, 
Rhag dwyn y wreigen liw dydd goleu. 

Purloiner of our fleecy care, 
Art thou the guardian of the fair? 
Hence doors are closed in open day, 
Or thou'dst purloin the bride away. 

The Fescennine liberty the Roman populace availed 
themselves of, to rally each other in alternate verses, 
was never carried to a higher pitch of mirthful seve- 
rity, than these extemporaneous lampoons among 
the Cambro-Britons : 

" Fescennina per hunc invecta licentia morem, 
Versibus alternis opprobria rusiica fudit" 

Thus rose the Fescennine licentious sport, 
Where rustic bards their rustic muses court; 
Where untaught swains retort on untaught swains, 
Alternate satire in alternate strains. 

However, as no individual was named, no offence 
could be given, and every sarcasm was considered 
as the ebullition of wit, rather than as the scintilla- 
tion of incipient ire. On the entrance of the suc- 
cessful competitors, they endeavoured to engage the 
attention of the company by friendly inquiries after 
their health, remarks on the adventures of the day, or 
attempts at the introduction of a more interesting 
subject of conversation; while a few of the most 
eloquent and insinuating of the party addressed 
themselves to the bride, and made every essay to 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 33 

prevail upon her to accompany them, alleging the 
impatience of the bridegroom, complaining of the 
cruelty of keeping him in suspense, and of the inca- 
pacity of her own attendants to do her the honours 
, which so much worth deserved, and declaring their 
resolution to suffer every thing for her sake, as well 
as for her protection ! During the delivery of their 
message, in this or similar language, some of the 
party, representing themselves as the faithful and 
confidential servants of the bridegroom, gently led 
the bride and her bride-maid to the door, 

"With sweet, reluctant, amorous delay/' 

where some of their friends having provided a car- 
riage or white palfreys ready caparisoned, they were 
mounted and hurried out of sight with all imaginable 
expedition, lest the bridal party should recover from 
their surprise, attempt to pursue them, and parti- 
cipate in the honour of introducing their fair charge 
to the anxious bridegroom. The remainder of the 
juvenile adventurers having their steeds ready, and 
in custody of their friends, instantly vaulted into 
their saddles, and were in full career to follow their 
leaders. The fleetest attended the bride, while the 
most powerful, and the most expert in martial ex- 
ercises brought up the rear. No moment was lost 
in unnecessary delay, and no precaution neglected 
that could be thought likely to ensure their safety, 
and contribute to their success; for as soon as the 
bride's adherents could collect their friends, and put 
themselves in array, they seldom failed to pursue in 
full force, and attempt to recover their lost honour, 

D 



34 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 

by rescuing their queen from the hands of her new 
protectors. Every stratagem was therefore essayed 
to impede their progress, and every justifiable me- 
thod adopted to disconcert their plans, and frustrate 
their designs. It sometimes happened that by su- 
perior knowledge of the country, and by pursuing a 
different route, they were able to seize an important 
pass and block up the way; or when confident in 
their dexterity, and superiority in point of numbers, 
they frequently ventured on fair ground to dispute, 
with the juvenile cavalcade, the honour of the day, 
and to compel them, after the most valorous achieve- 
ments, to relinquish their hopes, and resign their 
charge. In the days of chivalry when the comba- 
tants were clad in armour, many a spear was broken, 
and many a gallant feat performed, as at a regular 
tournament. Their principal attention however was 
generally directed to attempts at unhorsing their 
adversaries, or disarming them, and rendering them 
incapable of resistance. Good horsemanship, and a 
considerable share of strength, sometimes enabled 
them, while riding at full speed to throw their right 
arm round the waist of an opponent, bear him off 
his steed, and let him down gently without injury 
or accident. For no violence was allowable: and 
to prevent any mischief from the natural ardour and 
impetuosity of youth, a select number of venerable 
old champions took care to be of the party to pre- 
serve order, and guard against unpleasant accidents. 
But in spite of every precaution, it unavoidably 
happened that a few strokes with the cudgel some- 
times passed, or that between disarmed champions, 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 35 

a few blows with the fist* were interchanged, and 
on some occasions cool proposals to " newid ergydj 
or exchange a blow, were made and accepted ; 
and in such cases, while every thing was fairly 
conducted, no offence was given, and no malice re- 
tained, as it was considered as an emulous display 
of dexterity rather than as the inflammatory effects 
of resentment. The design on one side was by mock 
rencounters and counterfeit engagements, to gain 
time till the bride should be carried in safety to the 
place of her destination : and on the other, to rescue 
her at all hazards, and to wipe off the imaginary 
stain, which, through their remissness, had been 
thrown upon their honour, and sullied their fame as 
nuptial body-guards. As it was a species of martial 
sport in which both parties had voluntarily engaged, 
to lose their temper, and take offence at any occur- 
rence, which it was natural to expect, was deemed 
a mark of an illiberal and unmanly disposition. When 
necessary, however, the old experienced champions 
interfered, and endeavoured by good humoured 
raillery to convert every rising dispute into a jest, or 
when necessary, to interpose their authority, and try 
their predominating influence to restore peace and 
tranquillity. From the habits of the parties, and the 
precautions taken by the most experienced, serious 
quarrels seldom occurred, and dangerous accidents 



* Paffio, or boxing, as a branch of ymafael, or wrestling-, was 
not unknown among the games of the ancient Britons, but all 
disputes were formerly settled with the sword, and in modern 
times by its representative the cudgel. 



36 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 

rarely happened. When the adventurous cohort 
arrived at the place appointed by the bridegroom for 
their rendezvous, they were welcomed by their 
friends with joyful acclamations, their valour eulo- 
gized, and their achievements celebrated in songs 
and encomiastic poems. If the bride appeared under 
their protection their triumph was complete, and the 
successes of the day considered equal to the most 
sanguine expectations. The meeting of the happy 
pair was attended with more than usual exultation, 
and no ordinary degree of mirth and jovial festivity. 
When the baffled party of the bride at length arrived, 
they were received with every mark of friendship, but 
not without some jocular observations on their vigi- 
lance, their fidelity, and their attention to the fair 
sex, and their skill and address in protecting them ; 
while they in reply acknowledged they had for once 
suffered themselves to be surprised, but promised, on 
the next occasion that should present itself, to de- 
monstrate that the success of the day was more at- 
tributable to good fortune than to good generalship. 
Both parties now united, and the active youths on 
both sides, by severe contests at athletic exercises, 
exerted themselves to discover how far the preceding 
events could be considered as proofs of the justice of 
fortune's decrees, and how far the vanquished in ex- 
cellence at gymnastic sports were inferior to the 
victors. When these important points were settled, 
and when the approach of evening invited the martial 
youths to fairer society, and forbad the continuance 
of rougher pastimes, those who did not immediately 
return to their respective homes, joined the female 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 37 

part of the matrimonial assembly, who often proved, 
by their partiality to the young gallants who had 
excelled in the field, that they were not insensible to 
chivalrous merit. The remainder of the evening 
was dedicated to social amusements, or the pleasures 
of the sprightly dance. The Gauls, the Cimbri, the 
ancient Britons, and the other Celtic tribes, were 
not, like the Germans, addicted to gluttony and 
inebriety ; their love of poetry and music, and their 
susceptibility of the finer passions, rendered their 
assemblies gay, cheerful, and harmonious. They 
are described as sitting at table in a chequered form, 
the sexes being placed alternately.* The harp was 
frequently introduced ; on which every well-educated 
young man would playf a 'prelude. It was likewise 
customary to compose apennill or extemporary stanza, 
on any subject, when it could be thought likely to 
contribute to the amusement of the company. When 
the harp was handed round, every man played an air 
in his turn, and accompanied it with a.pennill, in which 
he was joined by the female that sat next to him. 



* This custom will remind our classical readers of the Persian 
fashion, which induced Darius's Ambassadors, once on a time, 
to request the Macedonian king's permission to have the privilege 
of the society of his ladies. " When we make a great feast in 
Persia," says one of them, " our manner is to bring in our concu- 
bines and young women to sit beside us." Herod, lib. v. c. 18. 
In these enlightened days even, slaves as we are to fashion and 
artificial manners, we may often observe the reverse of this inte- 
resting sociality, but whether it proceeds from an awkward shy- 
ness in the lovelier sex, or from a want of gallantry in the men, or 
both, it is not my province to determine. Editor. 

t See Giraldus Cambrensis and Jones's Relics of the Bards. 



38 M a X N E US AND CU STOM 8 F 

The air and the appropriate stanza were frequently 
the ebullitions of the moment. To reject the instru- 
ment when thus circulated, and to declare they never 
had been instructed to perform on it, was considered 
extremely disgraceful. Some of the veteran cham- 
pions possessed an inexhaustible fund of anecdotes, 
composed in very humorous language, by a peculiar 
knack in the repetition of which they could keep the 
table in a roar for a whole evening. The " dat- 
geinwyr" or the repeaters of the poems of the bards, 
by a judicious selection of the works of favourite 
authors, and a happy mode of delivering them, fre- 
quently succeeded in impressing on their audience 
any sentimental affection they pleased. When wea- 
ried of their own musical efforts, the professed harper 
and the scientific singer would attend, to gratify the 
correcter taste of the company, with musical deli- 
cacies of a more exquisite nature. Their dances, 
being those of war and peace, were characteristic 
and lively, and were subdivided into those which re- 
presented all the incidents of war, as well as all the 
usual employments of peace. " Helar ysgyfarnogf* 
or hunting the hare, is still preserved ; the music 
may be seen in Jones's Relics of the Bards. An 
agricultural dance called y Feeillionen, or the Trefoil, 
is still known. In all the operations of the field, the 
Britons, to induce them to labour, were fascinated 
with the charms of music. Every reaper had his 



* " Helar ysgyfarnog, or hunting the hare, is preserved in 
Jones's Relics of the Bards, p. 69 : and the dance is still known 
in some parts of Wales, as are several of the other ancient dances. 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 39 

female partner as in a dance, and they were called 
to the field by the shrill notes of the " Corn Buclin," 
or the Bugle Horn ; while at work, they were cheered 
by songs, by the mellow sound of the pipes, or by 
the martial roll of the tabwrdd, or drum, and when 
their labour was completed, they returned home 
dancing and singing, preceded by the viol* and the 
harp. At the conclusion of their day's toil, and pre- 
viously to their departure homewards, they would 
amuse themselves with searching* among the trefoil 
for a stalk bearing four leaves, the discovery being 
attended with an acclamation of joy, as it was humo- 
rously considered as a certain indication, that the 
fortunate person who found it would speedily be 
married. All this is represented in the dance, called 
"y Feeittionen" or the Trefoil, and is still preserved, 
in some measure, in the reel among the Highlanders : 
and characterized by the Shamrock^ among the 
Irish. The dance opens with the " Hay, hau" or 
sowing, where each person moves singly, throwing 
his arms as he moves, in imitation of the sower while 
in the act of committing the corn to the ground ; then 
a male and female set to each other, emblematical of 
the pleasing sight of wheat harvest, when every 



* The ancient crwth, was perhaps the violin cT amour, and not 
the modern violin. 

f The Shamrock of the Irish is evidently the Meillionen of the 
Welsh, the same plant is known by different names in several 
parts of England ; it is probable, however, that it may have other 
names of stronger resemblance. The genuine plant is known by 
different names in Ireland, as well as in Wales and Scotland. 



40 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 

reaper finds the difficulties of labour mollified by the 
exhilarating society of his female partner ; the turning 
and setting to different persons in the dance are re- 
presentations of the harvest play of searching for the 
lucky trefoil ; the figure the two males and females 
form at the close of the dance, represents the fortunate 
qua trefoil ; and the shout the highlanders generally 
give at this part of it, is descriptive of the acclama- 
tion of joy at the fortunate discovery, while industri- 
ously engaged in the field, of the symbols of matri- 
monial happiness. The dances of ancient days, like 
other old institutions, were more calculated to mix 
utility with diversion, by teaching the populace to 
amuse themselves innocently, to lead them to benefit 
themselves essentially ; by their amusements in 
peace to qualify them for war, and by their recrea- 
tions when at leisure, to reconcile them to the 
thoughts of labour. All that remains of the old 
ceremonies, the old customs, the old institutions at 
marriages, and the ancient figures in their dances, 
seems evidently, as far as may be collected from 
what is transmitted to us, to have had originally that 
tendency. It is singular that any well informed 
traveller should be so blind or ignorant, as to over- 
look the beneficial intention of the little still left of 
their ancient customs in the modern Welsh wed- 
dings. A sober and religious disposition in some 
districts, and an inclination to copy every thing 
English in others, have tended, in a great measure, 
to obliterate many of the ancient traits of British or 
Druidical social institutions ; but in some parts of 
Wales, almost the whole of the ceremonies enume- 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 41 

rated above are still observed ; in others, they are 
so often the subject of conversation, or so often par- 
tially imitated, that no traveller conversant with the 
language can be unacquainted with them. It is, 
therefore, difficult to account for the disgusting pic- 
ture a late journalist has drawn of the matrimonial 
feasts of the Cambro-Britons, without supposing that 
he had never seen the original, or that he copied it 
from the miserable daubings of some unskilful or 
malicious Grub-street artist, better acquainted with 
the licentious scenes in the streets of London, than 
with the remains of the moral and benevolent insti- 
tutions still observable in the Principality of Wales. 
At many of these weddings, the collection made for 
the bridegroom has amounted to a hundred pounds 
sterling, and that made for the bride to nearly as 
much. In former times the contributions were more 
liberal, and their value, from the scarcity of money at 
that period, more considerable. If at present these 
institutions prove less beneficial, it is because they 
are not countenanced by the great, nor their useful 
tendency sufficiently understood by the people them- 
selves. These nuptial presents could not injure the 
donor, because they were subsequently returned to 
him ; they were no dishonour to the acceptors, be- 
cause they were considered as matrimonial compli- 
ments which were to be returned, when acceptable 
to others and convenient to themselves. They en- 
couraged a spirit of philanthropy among the people, 
by accustoming them to benefit each other by actions 
of kindness and humanity ; while they proved incen- 
tives to a virtuous deportment, by stimulating the 



42 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 

youths of both sexes, to such a conduct as might en- 
title them to the patronage and protection of their 
opulent friends, and wealthy neighbours. These 
donations enabled them also to furnish their house 
and stock their farm, at a period when one agricul- 
tural Leviathan did not monopolize and devour the 
profits of all the farms in the parish, and frighten the 
remainder of the starving inhabitants into the work- 
house ; but when landlords had the good sense and 
humanity to divide their estate into farms of a mode- 
rate extent, and reasonable rent, every youthful 
couple could find a habitation, and every habitation 
its necessary proportion of land. The festivity of a 
day, therefore, contributed to the happiness of a 
whole life ; while an industrious peasant and a 
modest economical maiden were, by the trifles which 
their neighbours deposited, perhaps with no other 
intention than with a view to their own amusement, 
placed in possession of a competency, and beyond 
the reach of want for the remainder of their lives. 
At an early hour the young couple retired, attended 
by a few select friends, to the place of their intended 
habitation, where they were left with the usual com- 
pliments and the customary mirthful ceremonies. The 
company continued frequently to a late hour at the 
place appointed for the meeting of the parties, where 
the song and the dance and the general festivities of 
the evening contributed, on some occasions, to the 
formation of lasting connexions, which ended in other 
weddings, and provided for the joyous entertain- 
ments of other evenings. 



THE ANCIENT CELTIC TRIBES. 43 



AN HISTORICAL ESSAY 

ON THE TASTE, TALENTS, AND LITERARY ACQUISITIONS OF THE 
DRUIDS, AND THE ANCIENT CELTIC BARDS. 

'T^HE literary acquisitions of the Druids, the Bards, 
A and others professedly devoted to the muses 
among the Cimbri, the Gauls, and the other Celtic 
tribes, were more considerable than the narrow-minded 
jealousy of some modern authors seems willing to 
admit. The account given of their achievements, and 
of the eminence at which they arrived in their pro- 
fession, the vestiges discovered in history of the 
extraordinary effects of their art, and the fragments 
that remain of their compositions, may be regarded 
as evident proofs that they had made no contemptible 
progress in the cultivation of literature, and that we 
have only a few mutilated limbs of the colossal literary 
statue of the earlier ages. An idea may be formed of 
the gigantic magnitude of the original figure from the 
grandeur and beauty of the parts that have been for- 
tunately preserved. If the ancient anecdotes of bard- 
ism be regarded as fables, they are fables not entirely 
destitute of foundation, nor totally devoid of con- 
nexion with the known history of the cultivators of 
poetry, among the Cimbric and Celtic tribes. Many 
of the most celebrated characters recorded by the 
Greeks and Egyptians, as inventors of some of the 
liberal arts, and authors of useful institutions, are 
claimed bv the Gauls and ancient Britons, as the 



44 LITERARY ACQUISITIONS OF 

benefactors of their race, as well as the founders of 
some of their popular tribes. Olen is represented by 
Pausanias as one of the first prophets of Delphi ; 
and by one of the Delphic priestesses he is portrayed 
as the inventor of verse. In the primitive ages, the 
prophetic and poetic characters were not unfre- 
quently sustained by the same individual. Olen, 
Olenus, Ailinus, and Linus, are considered but as 
different appellations of the same person, and in 
those remote times, the inhabitants of Egypt and 
Greece attributed to him the same talents, and the 
same inventions. In the ancient British Triads,* 
Alon is described as one of the three who first com- 
bined into a system the institutes and privileges of 
the bards, consistently with the account given by 
Homer of the public honours paid in ancient times to 
Linus, as represented in the celebrated poetic de- 
scription of the shield of Achilles : 

" To this a pathway gently winding leads, 
Where march a train with baskets on their heads ; 
Fair maids and blooming youths that smiling bear 
The purple product of th' autumnal year ; 
To these a youth awakes the warbling strings, 
Whose tender lay the fate of Linus sings, 
The measur'd dance behind him move the train, 
Tune soft the voice, and answer to the strain." 

The Celtic bards were esteemed unrivalled in their 
poetical compositions, as well as in the art of ex- 
citing or allaying the passions. The time they al- 
lotted to the study of the human heart, and the 
address they discovered in raising or calming its 

* Cambrian Biography, p. 5, &c. 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. 45 

passions, rendered them expert in the arts of guid- 
ing the multitude, and awakening in their breasts 
what emotions they pleased. It is from his pro- 
ficiency in these arts that Amphion, who was but a 
superior kind of bard, was fabled by the Greeks to 
have excited the trees to follow him, and tie stones 
to obey his voice, and spontaneously to throw them- 
selves into such regular order, as to have served for 
walls and bulwarks to the city of Thebes. In this 
fable is represented the address of the bards, and 
their skill in softening the manners, and influencing, 
by their music, the hearts of those who were natu- 
rally rough and obdurate as rocks, and stubborn and 
inflexible as oaks, guiding them as they pleased, and 
impelling them to the institution of society, and the 
cultivation of useful arts. One of the greatest ob- 
stacles to the establishment of social tranquillity is 
the jarring interest of individuals respecting private 
property, and the name of Amphion in the Celtic has 
been derived from a source which implies the com- 
poser of differences with respect to private pos- 
sessions ;* as if the charms of his music, and the 



* Amphion has been derived from am, about, andpmw(in con- 
struction phiau), to possess ; and Orpheus from Gorphwys, (in 
construction orphwys, i orphwys), to rest, to sooth, or charm to 
rest. Etymologies are extremely uncertain ; but these deriva- 
tions wear as much the appearance of probability and consistency, 
as any attempt that has been made to trace them to a Grecian 
source. Orpheus is also said to be by some a pure Celtic com- 
pound — Or-Fis, music — knowledge, deviating, by the slightest 
breath, from the original. Some derive Apollo from the Welsh 
Ap Haul, the son of the sun ! Others, from the Greek Atto tf\iu>, 
from the sun. Editor. 



46 LITER ART ACQUISITIONS OF 

magic of his verse, had the effect of calming conten- 
tions, and allaying animosities. It has often been 
asserted, that Thrace, the residence of Orpheus, was 
anciently inhabited by a Gallic colony, and that 
Rhesus, a Thracian prince mentioned by Homer, was 
of Gallic origin. It is certain that the hymns, now 
extant, and the other compositions ascribed to Or- 
pheus, cannot, from the language, be of so remote an 
antiquity. They may, however, be more modern 
translations from ancient Gallic, or Celtic originals. 
The character given of him, and the qualities as- 
signed him, appear more congenial to the talents and 
dispositions of a Celtic bard, than of a Grecian poet ; 
while his sylvan retreat on the banks of the Thracian 
river Hebrus savours not a little of the manners and 
propensities of a Druid. The earlier part of the 
Celtic history abounds with fabulous characters, re- 
presented as meriting the highest honours for their 
mental acquisitions, and their useful scientific dis- 
coveries ; and it does not appear improbable, that 
the extraordinary achievements assigned in subse- 
quent ages by the Greeks, to their fabulous heroes 
and demigods, were copied from the fabulous com- 
positions of a more ancient people, who brought with 
them from the eastward the warmth of an oriental 
imagination, and the energy of an expressive, and 
highly figurative language. In some fragments of 
the writings of the Celts, not only is the proficiency 
made in the earlier ages, in each particular science, 
specified, but the persons most celebrated for their 
profession of them, as well as the most remarkable 
for their skill, are recorded with apparent correct- 






THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. . 47 

ness and precision ; and, on many occasions, the 
periods in which they lived, and the stock whence 
they derived their origin, are particularly stated with 
every semblance of historical accuracy. Idris Gawr, 
or Idris the Giant, is named as one of the eminent 
astronomers of Britain. The exact period in which 
he flourished cannot now be ascertained, but it is 
represented as having been considerably prior to the 
era of history. In their progress from the East, the 
highest hills appear to have been generally selected 
by the Celts, as the most eligible spots assigned him 
for his residence since their arrival in Wales. Cadair 
Idris, or the seat of Idris, a lofty mountain in Merio- 
nethshire, is the fabulous scene of many a romantic 
tale, of the exploits of the father of astronomical 
science ; as it is of the professional contests of the 
bards, who seem for many generations to have con- 
sidered it as their Parnassus. In the story of Idris 
it is impossible not to discover the counterpart of the 
Grecian fable of the gigantic Atlas, stationed on the 
summit of the most elevated mountain, and bending- 
beneath the weight of the incumbent heavens.* 
Gwdion, the son of Don, a mythological personage, 
is likewise celebrated for his knowledge of astronomy, 
and is described as one of the three sublime astrono- 
mers of Britain. The name given him in the British 
Triads, of the son of Don, or the son of the wave, 
seems to imply, that he converted his scientific at- 
tainments to the useful purposes of navigation. From 

* See Cambrian Biography, p. 1 94. 



48 . LITERARY ACQUISITION'S OF 

the earliest periods, Caer Gwdion, or the illuminated 
city of Gwdion, has been a favourite epithet among 
the bards, for the galaxy, or milky way. The other 
personage who distinguished himself by his superior 
acquirements in astronomical learning, was Gwyn, 
the son of Nudd. For the Triads, ever observant of 
the number three, as inviolably sacred, never increase 
or diminish the number of individuals represented as 
having acquired celebrity by mental superiority, or 
personal qualifications. That the application of as- 
tronomical acquisitions to the purposes of navigation 
was not unknown to the Celts, seems corroborated 
by several extraordinary traditions. Madog, the son 
of a prince of North Wales, is mentioned as having 
sailed to the westward at a very early period, with 
ten ships, and a numerous body of men, and is said 
to have been the first European discoverer of the 
American continent. At a still earlier period, 
Gavran, a British chieftain, sailed at the head of his 
faithful tribe, to discover the celebrated islands, dis- 
tinguished by the appellation of the Green Islands 
of the ocean, probably the Fortunate Islands of the 
ancients. The Triads mention other expeditions, and 
describe the naval force of Britain, at a remote age, 
as formidable and numerous. " Hu Gadarn" or 
Hu the Mighty, is represented as having brought the 
Cimbri to Britain, and to Armorica, in Gaul, over the 
" hazy sea," or the German ocean. He is celebrated 
by the bards, as being the first who taught the art of 
agriculture, and as having, after his arrival in France, 
contributed to the civilization of the inhabitants, and 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. 49 

the cultivation of the soil.* Still prior to the age 
in which Hu the mighty flourished, Nevydd Nav 
Neivion is said to have constructed a ship of such 
extraordinary dimensions, that when the eruption of 
the lake of floods deluged the world, he was enabled 
to carry in it the male and female of every living 
creature. The construction of this celebrated vessel 
is ranked among the three memorable achievements 
of the Cimbri. The story of Nevydd bears a strong 
resemblance to the Grecian fable of Deucalion ; and 
perhaps both may be traditionary relations of Noahs 
Deluge. Nevydd may be only a corruption of the 
word Noah, in order to render it capable of Cimbric 
etymology. Nav Neivion means the chieftain of 
chieftains, a patriarch, the head of many others, the 
source whence Gomer, the grandson of Noah and the 
ancestor of the Gomeri or Cimbri, derived his origin. 
A coin has been preserved, said to have been disco- 
vered at Magnesia, on which a floating chest is re- 
presented containing a male and female. It appears 
from the inscription \ to have been intended to com- 

* A curious bas-relief has been discovered iu France, repre- 
senting this hero in the act of cutting down a tree ; as a memorial 
of his having cleared the ground for the purposes of agriculture. 
A print of this valuable piece of antiquity is exhibited in the 
memoirs of the French Academy, vol. ii. p. 370. 

T See a further account of this very curious coin in Falco- 
nerii Inscriptiones Athleticce, printed at Rome. A. D. 1688. The 
name of the neighbouring city of Apamea appears upon the coin. 
Both cities were remarkable for the observance of the same 
ceremonies, and the celebration of the same games, and the 
latter was situated near that part of Asia, whence some anti- 
quaries contend, that the Cimbri, or Cimri derive their origin 
See Dr. Delavy's Dissertations, vol. i. p. 231. 

E 



50 LITERARY ACQUISITIONS OF 

memorate an event not dissimilar to that celebrated 
in the story of Nevydd Nav Neivion ; and it is im- 
plied that in that neighbourhood public games had 
been instituted, and continued at stated periods, for 
many generations, as memorials of so extraordinary 
an occurrence. The other remarkable achieve- 
ments classed in the Triads with the construction of 
Nevydd's spacious vessel, are Gwyddon's Scientific 
Inscriptions. He is celebrated for his eminence in 
various branches of literature, is described as the 
earliest composer of vocal song, and represented as 
having made such wonderful proficiency in the 
sciences, that he left, for the benefit of posterity, his 
scientific discoveries engraved on marble, or inscribed 
on stones of wonderful magnitude. Whether this 
alludes to hieroglyphical inscriptions, or to the 
Runic characters, generally found on rocks and large 
stones, in many places in the northern parts of 
Europe, is uncertain. But it unquestionably exhibits 
a curious trait in antiquity, and whether fabulous, or 
supported by historical evidence, may be deemed well 
deserving the investigation of the historian and the 
antiquary. " And these stones had written on them," 
say the Triads, " every art and science in the world." 
" So much is true," says Sir William Temple in his 
Essays, " that the Runic pieces were for long pe- 
riods of time in use, upon materials more lasting than 
others employed to that purpose ; for, instead of 
leaves or barks, or parchments, these were engraven 
upon stone, or planks of oaks, upon artificial obelisks 
or pillars, and even upon natural rocks, in great 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. 51 

numbers and extent of lines. M * Llechau, the son of 
Arthur, is celebrated in the Triads, as one of the 
three philosophers of Britain, who were masters of 
all sciences. Rhiwallon, Wallt Banadlen, or with 
the brown coloured hair, is distinguished as one of 
three personages most eminent for their knowledge 
of natural history. Others are, in a similar manner, 
honourably mentioned as the most celebrated for 
their proficiency in eloquence, poetry, and history. 
Some are handed down to posterity, as the most dis- 
tinguished for their skill in agriculture, and others 
for their superiority in the practice of physic. Some 
for their eminence in mechanical knowledge, f and 
others for the celebrity acquired in mathematical 
learning. In the Triads, an interesting account is 
given of the literature of those earlier ages, and if the 
scientific acquisitions of our ancestors, at that period, 
be not admitted to have equalled the superior attain- 
ments of their descendants in a more enlightened 
age, it must be acknowledged to be no small honour, 
to have made some proficiency in the liberal arts at a 
time when the rest of Europe was sunk in ignorance, 
or lost in barbarism and ferocity. The most extraor- 



* Sir William Temple's Miscellanies, part 2nd, p. 91. 

f Merddin, or Merlin, the Bard Ambrosius, is represented as 
having been eminently versed in mathematical knowledge, and 
renowned for mechanical inventions; and is said to have con- 
structed for his patron, that stupendous monument of Druidical 
ingenuity, called by the ancient British writers, the work of 
Ambrosius, and by the moderns^ Stonehenge. Cambrian Bio- 
graphy, p. 249. 



52 LITERARY ACQUISITIONS OF 

dinary compositions of what may be called the fabu- 
lous period of the Celtic history, are the " Englynion 
Milwr" or the Warrior's songs. They are stanzas 
undoubtedly written during the influence of the 
Druidical Order, and contain many of their maxims, 
and throw some light on the obscure part of their his- 
tory. They consist invariably of three lines, and con- 
clude with a proverbial sentence, a military aphorism, 
or a moral apophthegm. No doubt is entertained 
of the antiquity of these stanzas, but various opinions 
have prevailed respecting their import and original 
design. Some antiquaries have contended, that the 
former lines in each of these Druidical triplets have 
no precise meaning, but are only intended to intro- 
duce the latter, which always contain some valuable 
proverbial truth, or philosophical observation. These 
authors, no doubt, imagine they act liberally towards 
their ancestors, in allowing only two thirds of their 
compositions to have been devoid of sense, while it 
too often unfortunately happens, that all that some of 
their descendants have written, may be said to be in 
that predicament. On maturer investigation, how- 
ever, it will be found that these stanzas are not only 
in every line fraught with good sense, but tend, when 
assisted by the light borrowed from the writings of 
the Greek and Roman luminaries, to develope much 
of the manners of the age, and of the mode of educa- 
tion anciently prevalent among the Celts. These 
metrical productions being generally committed to 
memory, and seldom preserved in manuscripts, have 
been rendered obscure, by the accidental transpo- 
sition of the lines of one stanza into another of a 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BAUDS. 53 

similar termination, and the studied difficulty of the 
original composition has been increased by the im- 
perfect manner in which it has been transmitted to 
the present age. Several of them have been pub- 
lished in Dr. Rhys's folio Latin and Welsh Grammar, 
in Jones's Relics of the Welsh Bards, and in other 
works on Celtic and British Antiquity. The follow- 
ing may serve as a specimen of this curious fragment 
of Druidical literature, 

Eiry mynydd, gwympod ty, 
Qynnefin Bran a chanu, 
Ni ddaw da o dra chysgu* 

Winter snows enshroud the plain, 
Crows ever prove a croaking train, 
The fruit of indolence is pain. 

It maybe here observed, that the first line f of the 
warrior's song, generally contains a hint of the time 
and place of the action recorded; the second conveys 
an idea of the dramatis personae, or the principal cha- 
racters that are mentioned ; and the concluding line 
exhibits the substance of the historic, or fabulous 
tale, and the moral to be deduced from it. The 
subject is usually taken from rural life, such as 
naturally presented itself to the imagination of the 
original instructors of the Celts, among their groves 
and forests. The triplet that has been given as an 
example, may be illustrated by the well known Celtic 
fable of the Crow and the Squirrel. — " One severe 
winter morning, when the hills were covered with 



* Jones's Relics of the Welsh Bards. 

t This order of the lines was sometimes inverted. 



54 LITERARY ACQUISITIONS OF 

snow, and even the birds of the air found it difficult 
to endure the intenseness of the cold, or find any 
thing to serve them for sustenance, a Crow, who sat 
croaking on a tree, complaining of his hard fate, and 
of the inclemency of the season, observed a Squirrel, 
who had prudently collected a considerable store 
of provisions for the season, enjoying himself, and 
cracking his nuts and his jokes, on a hollow oak, 
which served him for a comfortable abode, and re- 
quested him to favour him with a few kernels, for 
that he was almost perishing with cold and hunger." 
" How did you employ yourself during the Summer," 
said the Squirrel, " that you are forced to act the part 
of a beggar in the Winter ?" " I amused myself in 
cultivating the beauties of song, foreboding evils to 
come, and entertaining you and others," said the 
Crow, " with the manly melody of my voice." " I 
confess," said the other, " I often heard your hoarse 
note, but as for its melody, notwithstanding the great 
practice you have had, I would not give you a nut- 
shell for the best song you can sing, either in Summer 
or in Winter. One of the principal requisites in music 
is to keep time, in which he is miserably deficient 
who wastes his precious hours in attempting a rude 
song, before he has stored his nest with the neces- 
sary articles of life." The feathered pretender to 
music, finding that nothing could be obtained from 
the generosity of his neighbour, was willing to hope 
that something might be made of his inexperience 
and imbecility. He resolved to try what could be 
done by stratagem, and expressed his astonishment, 
that one, whose store-houses were so well furnished, 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BAUDS, 



55 



should fatigue himself, and risk his neck, by skip- 
ping from tree to tree in the cold, and not rather lie 
down at his ease like a gentleman, and take a refresh- 
ing nap. " Vaulting from tree to tree proves bene- 
ficial to me, not only as exercise," replied the other, 
" but as the means of decoying the common plun- 
derers of the forest from my habitation ; and as for 
my insomnolency, as I have been active in summer to 
collect my provisions, I am determined that you shall 
always find me on the alert in winter, to preserve 
them ; for if I should be caught napping, I should 
soon find some artful neighbour or other, ingenious 
enough to discover and exhaust my stores ; and were 
I to perish through indigence, perhaps you, notwith- 
standing your fair professions, would prove cannibal 
enough to feed upon my carcass." The moral is 
Meliora vigilantia somno ;* vigilance and industry 
are ever productive of security and plenty ; but sloth 
and negligence tend to want and misery. 

The ancients delivered their precepts about man- 
ners, or about government, either by comparisons, full 
and at length, which were called parables ; or by 
short comprehensive sentences, denominated proverbs ; 
of which the Druidical stanzas were regarded as a 
valuable collection. Parables were taken from the 
most common objects of nature, or from irrational 



* See Jones's Relics of the Welsh Bards. A fable not unlike 
this may be found in verse, in Owen's edition of Gwylym, the 
Welsh Bard's works. The Damhegion Cymraeg, or Welsh Apo- 
logues, contain several fables, corresponding with the warrior's 
songs. There is a translation of them in MS., by the author of 
the Dissertatio de Bardis. 



50 LITERARY ACQUISITIONS OF 

animals ; as the parable of the Fruit Trees and the 
Bramble, in the Book of Judges ; of the Thistle 
and Cedar, in the Book of Chronicles; of the Hawk 
and Nightingale, in Hesiod ; of the Wolves, Dogs, 
and Sheep, in Demosthenes ; or from the members of 
the Human Body, as that of Menenius, in Livy. Or 
they sometimes proved less improbable relations of 
more natural and ordinary incidents, as the parable of 
Nathan to David ; and most of those in the New 
Testament. The Welsh, or Celtic apologues that 
have been preserved, are generally of the former de- 
scription, and form complete elucidations of some of 
the Druidical stanzas. In conformity with the cus- 
toms of the ancients, especially of the Eastern nations, 
the Druids instructed those committed to their care 
by short sententious aphorisms, which were occasion- 
ally elucidated, as the capacity of their pupils devel- 
oped itself. Their disciples were divided into three 
classes — children, youths, and men. The former 
were placed under the tuition of the lower order of 
the Bards, whose business it was, while they im- 
proved their morals, and cultivated their understand- 
ings, to enrich their memories with a copious store of 
the poetical and philosophical maxims of the Druids, 
which contained, in a concealed form, the first prin- 
ciples of all knowledge — the seeds of all sciences. 
" To the Druids," says Caesar, " belongs the care of 
divine things ; great numbers of youth come to be 
instructed by them ; their first lesson is to learn a 
considerable number of verses by rote, about which 
some have spent twenty years, for they never commit 
them to writing; not that they are ignorant of let- 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BAUDS. 57 

ters, for on all other occasions they make use of 
Greek characters ; but I suppose they observe this 
custom, to lock up their learning from the vulgar, 
and exercise the memory of their scholars, &c." # 
The purport of what they thus committed to memory 
was, in the first instance, unknown to the pupils, and 
perhaps, from the studied obscurity of the style, it 
was hardly intelligible to the master himself. But 
when the youthful mind unfolded itself, and disco- 
vered sufficient capacity to qualify it for admission 
into a superior class, among the Druid ical students, 
the stanzas they had been so many years learning 
memoriter were now carefully explained to them, 
their obscurity illustrated, and their meaning enforced, 
by mythological tales, and fabulous narrations, which, 
if the inexperienced youths could not comprehend 
them, never failed to make an impression, that gave 
the precepts inculcated a more favourable effect, when 
the matured understanding permitted them to germi- 
nate and grow, and fructify in the mind. The fabu- 
lous tales known by the name of Damhegion, or para- 
bles, were, in all probability, some of the fables used 
on these occasions to illustrate the Druidical rythms, 
and enforce their doctrine. They have been considered, 
by those conversant in Celtic literature, as the real 
origin of the romances so prevalent at one period in 
Europe, and so powerful in their effect on the style 
and manners of the age. In the infancy of history, 
when few examples could be drawn from real life to 

* Csesar's Commentaries, lib. vi. cap. viii. See Jones's Re- 
lics of the Bards, p. 2, &c. 



58 LITERARY ACQUISITIONS OF 

illustrate the precepts of morality, or the maxims of 
the art of war, the public instructors among the Celts 
invented parables, and composed fables to illustrate 
the apophthegms, and exemplify the dictates of phi- 
losophy that had been treasured up in the arsenal of 
the mind at an earlier period. The arms which had 
formerly attracted their attention by their brightness 
and their splendour, the martial students were now 
taught to handle and to use. The skeletons of Dru- 
idical science, which had been the playthings of 
more infantine years, were now supplied with tendons, 
strengthened with sinews, and furnished with fibres. 
The Damhegion, or Celtic fables, are examples of 
the first elucidations, used to illustrate the funda- 
mental maxims, or elementary principles of Druidical 
learning. The Mabinogion, or juvenile amusements, 
are examples of the species of instruction, calculated 
to improve the mind of the Druidical pupil, at a raa- 
turer period. Of the Da?nhegion, an example has 
been already produced : many of them have been 
preserved in ancient manuscripts, and the late Rev. 
Evan Evans, author of the Dissertatio de Bardis, 
had prepared a copy of them for the press, translated 
into English, and illustrated with notes. They are 
remarkable for the comprehensive brevity and energy 
of their style, and are not unfrequently pointed with 
the severest satire. In one of them, for instance, two 
descendants of the little heroes, celebrated in Homer's 
" Batrachomuomachia," are represented as having 
formed for their mutual conveniency a league of al- 
liance. In order to pass a dangerous torrent, one of 
them, from his habits of life, is under the necessity of 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. 59 

trusting himself on the shoulders of his ally, when a 
formidable water serpent suddenly makes its appear- 
ance, and greedily devours them both. This was pro- 
bably composed to enforce the truth of the Druidical 
maxim, " that an alliance with the brave and power- 
ful is advantageous, but with the weak fallacious," 
and was applied to the expediency of seeking for more 
powerful allies, against the invading hosts of the bar- 
barous Saxons, than the feeble and degenerated Armo- 
ricans. But in the dispute* between the established 
Christian clergy of Wales, Scotland, &c, and the 
emissaries of corrupted Rome, under the auspices of 
the Saxon monarchs, the priest, infallibly promising 
spiritual safety to his convert, was compared to the 
frog in the fable, engaging to ensure the mouse against 
all accidents while traversing a dangerous river, and 
the water-serpent was supposed to represent the evil 
spirit, devouring both the monastical director, and his 
too credulous disciple. 

As the Damhegion were illustrations of the Druidi- 
cal stanzas, adapted to the capacities of the youngest 



* It is remarked by Clarke, in his Letters on Spain, that the 
Spanish Christians had preserved themselves pure from popish in- 
novations till the seventh or eight century, and were in doctrine 
and discipline, nearly what the church of England is at present. 
Letters on the Spanish Nation, p. 10, 11, &c. The same may be 
said of the churches of Great Britain and Ireland, prior to the 
Saxon invasion, and the arrival of Austin, or Augustine. The suf- 
ferings of the Cambrian clergy on that occasion are well known. 
The Scots clergy preserved their religion pure from popish corrup- 
tion much longer, they retired to the hills, and were known by the 
names of Culdies, from cut, thin, and du, black, from their abste- 
mious lives, and grave habits, Gwr-cvtl-du. 



60 LITERARY ACQUISITION'S OK 

students, the Mabinogion, or juvenile amusements, 
were the elucidations of the same subject, chosen to 
attract the attention of those of maturer understand- 
ing. A specimen of this species of composition is 
given in the second 1 * volume of the Cambrian Regis- 
ter. A Cornish tale of a similar nature is inserted in 
Lloyd's Archseologia Britannica. That they were 
originally favourite vehicles of instruction in the Dru- 
idical colleges, and were used as illustrations of their 
philosophical maxims, is the only rational account 
that can be given of the prodigious number of these 
romantic tales still preserved among all the Celtic 
tribes ; and the exact conformity observed between 
them and the stanzas which they were intended to 
elucidate, is discernible by the most superficial ob- 
server. They seldom admit of more than two or three 
principal characters, and seem designed to enforce 
some moral precept, or virtuous sentiment. In the 
hands of the ingenious and learned author, who has 
lately undertaken to examine them, it will most likely 
be demonstrated, that they are what he has conjec- 
tured them to be, the copious source of the fictitious 
tales and romances of the middle ages.| 

The next class of Druidical students were those 
who were considered as young" men, and who had 



* See Vol. ii. p. 322, and vol. i. p. 117. Several of these tales 
are in the Red Book of Hergest, a MS. in Jesus' College Library, 
Oxford. 

f The dramatic entertainments, formerly so prevalent among the 
Celtic tribes, and still in vogue in some parts of Wales, from the 
paucity of their characters, and the moral tendency of their sub- 
ject, may probably be traced to the same source. They are gene- 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. 61 

studied with applause for seven years in each of the 
former classes ; they were now admitted under the 
care of the highest order of the Bards, and, in some 
instances, the Druids themselves condescended to be- 
come their instructors. The stanzas which they had 
learned in their infancy, and which had been partially 
elucidated by fabulous narrations, were now exem- 
plified by passages taken from real life, or from au- 
thentic history ; of which ancient mode of instruction 
the British Triads may be regarded as venerable mo- 
numents. Many passages in them evidently corres- 
ponded with the fragments of the Druidical verses 
still extant, and were probably used as illustrations 
of them in the Celtic schools.* Caesar's account of 
the Celtic system of education is, that the youths were 
sent by their parents to the college of the Druids, 
where they consumed twenty years in committing to 
memory many thousand verses : which corroborates, in 
a great measure, the narration already supplied, and 
renders it probable, (as mentioned by other authors), 
that they remained in a state of literary pupillage 
till their one-and-twentieth year; and were nearly 
seven years under the care of each of. the three dif- 
ferent orders of the Bardic literati ; during which 
period they were instructed by competent masters, 

rally acted in the open air, on temporary stages erected in woods 
or forests, and are denominated chwareur Hendre Iwyd, dra- 
matic sports of the Old Town. They are asserted by some anti- 
quaries, to be of Trojan origin. Many of the inferior Welsh Bards 
delight in this species of scenic composition, which they corruptly 
call interlude. 

* Csesar de Bello Gallico, lib. vi. c. 8. 



G2 LITERARY ACQUISITIONS OF 

under the inspection of their superiors, and in the 
course of occasional relaxations from severer pursuits 
in the usual accomplishments, playing on the harp, 
the four-and-twenty manly games, martial exercises, 
and every thing necessary to complete the Celtic 
chieftain, and the well disciplined soldier. The an- 
cient Gauls, and the other Celtic tribes, regarded their 
sons as unfit for society, and seldom* admitted them 
to their presence, till they had completed their edu- 
cation, were fit to bear arms, had acquired a compe- 
tent knowledge of the four-and-twenty games, and 
were calculated to make a respectable appearance at 
their Cyfedclachs, or convivial meetings. Every sci- 
ence appears to have been taught by the Druids, in 
a similar manner ; the elementary parts being deli- 
vered in brief, but comprehensive stanzas, which were 
committed to memory. These fundamental princi- 
ples were subsequently dilated and illustrated by 
abler, and more scientific masters, till the radical 
maxims first introduced into the mind, sprung up into 
luxuriant plants, and in process of time enlarged their 
growth, and spread their branches, till, like Merlin's 
orchard, they sheltered their country with their 
shade, and enriched it with their fruit. In a warlike 
nation, and in a tumultuous age, the most gratifying- 
study among the sons of martial chieftains, was the 
art of war, j" the tactics being taught by the venerable 

* Caesar de Bello Gallico, lib. vi. c. 9. 

f Dunod Fawr, or Dunod the Great, the son of Pabo, is cele- 
brated in the Triads, as the chieftain that excelled all others in 
tactical knowledge, and skill in the art of war. The other two 
remarkable for their extraordinary talents in military science, 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. 63 

literati of the Britons, on the same principles as the 
other arts already described. It happened that, on 
the subject of their favourite studies, more verses 
were retained by the Celtic youths, than on that of 
any other science : hence the Druidical stanzas, some 
of which being on warlike subjects, and handed down 
to subsequent ages, were generally denominated, 
Englyn Milwr, or the Warrior's Song. Some of the 
original elementary verses on the subject, with their 
correspondent illustrations in the parables and fabu- 
lous compositions, and their historical exemplifications 
in the Triads, are still extant : and where any ob- 
scurity is observed in them, it probably arises from the 
loss of the correspondent fables, or historical passages 
that tended to illustrate them. A British warrior, 
doubtless, in those times, could sing the war song to 
his harp, and in poetic strains divulge all the secrets, 
and all the scientific maxims of the military art. Ex- 
pressed in brief, energetic, but abstruse lines, they 
were completely understood by none but proficients ; 
planted, as they were, in the earliest infancy of the 
chieftain's mind, they suggested to his thoughts, in 
every difficulty, apposite examples from history, which 
served to furnish him with expedients, and tended, in 
every emergency, to supply him with masterly stra- 
tagems, skilful devices, and inexhaustible resources. 
Schools were erected,* and colleges were founded, 



were Cynfelin, or Cunobelinus, and Gwallog, the son of Llenog. 
These three martial chieftains were celebrated as the three pil- 
lars of battle of Great Britain. Cambrian Biography , p. 91 ► 
* Csesar de Bello Gallico, lib. vi. c. 8. 



04 LITERARY ACQUISITION'S OF 

among the Celts, even in the most turbulent times : 
and when the lovers of harmony and of science could 
find no safer habitation, they retired to the recesses of 
distant groves and forests, where, secure from the 
tempests of war, their ingenious and industrious 
youths cultivated, in peace and tranquillity, the tender 
plants of learning, and reared the flowers of useful 
and ornamental arts.* 

Bangor Iscoed,| in Flintshire, was famed, during 
many years, for the learned characters it produced, and 
the crowds of students that flocked to it from all parts 
of^the Gallic and Celtic territories. This college was 
founded at an early period, and acquired considerable 
celebrity. Ynyr, a Silurian prince, distinguished Caer 
Went, on the confines of Monmouthshire, by a similar 
endowment. Dunod, Cynwyl, and Illtycl, called by 
the Latins, Iltudus, were eulogized by the Bards as 
liberal patrons of similar institutions ; the counties of 
Glamorgan, Pembroke, and Carmarthen boasted, at 
one period, their rival seats of the Cambrian Muses ; 
and Anglesey, in a still earlier age, was considered as 
the source of literature, and the favourite haunt of the 
Bards. Those who wished to render themselves per- 
fect masters of Druidical learning, repaired, accord- 
ing to Csesar's account,^ to Great Britain to acquire 
it. Their opinions concerning the omnipotence of 
the Deity, the immortality of the soul, and their di- 
ligence in instructing the youth committed to their 

* Lewis's History of Great Britain, b. v. chap. 1. 
f Cambrian Biography, pp. 92, 205, 344, &c. 
| Ceesar de Bello Gallico, lib. vi. cap. 8, &c. 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. 65 

care, in their philosophical system of the nature of 
things, the extent of the world, and the magnitude 
and motion of the stars, have been acknowledged and 
recorded with admiration by contemporary Roman 
authors.* These testimonies may serve to prove the 
philosophical acquisitions of the Druidical order, and 
the celebrity of Britain as the seat of the Muses, as 
well as the fruitful source of the arts and sciences, in 
ages long prior to the Christian era. The storms of 
war and the ravages of time have destroyed most of 
the fruits of Druidical labour ; but from the flavour 
of the little that remains, a conjecture may be formed 
of the peculiar excellency of taste for which the rest 
were celebrated. The skill of language may render 
it inaccessible to the indolent or the uninformed ; 
but to those whose talents, or whose persevering in- 
dustry have taught them to surmount that difficulty, 
the specimen of the fruit of ancient Celtic literature, 
preserved by the curious, has ever afforded a most 
grateful relish, and a most exquisite mental gratifica- 
tion. These works abound in strains of the purest 
morality, and occasionally rise to the sublimest 
thoughts on the power and benevolence of the Deity, 
the immortality of the soul, the future punishment of 
the vicious, and the ineffable felicity reserved for the 
cultivators of piety and virtue. Although in some of 
them passages occur, so enveloped in fable, and so in- 
volved in mythological obscurity, as almost totally to 
conceal the designs of the author; yet, in some of 

* Csesar de Bello Gallico, ubi supra, Lucan. Pharsal. lib. i, 
Sueton. Vit. Cses. &c. 



66 LITERARY ACQUISITIONS OF 

these Celtic fables, able antiquaries have discovered 
the prototypes of much of the Grecian mythology ; 
as in the story of the Celtic hero, whose athletic make 
was such, that he could carry to the summit of a hill 
a stone that several oxen afforded not strength suf- 
ficient to remove — the origin of the story of Sisiphus, 
in Cyridwen, the fable of Venus — and what is related 
of *" Pair Cyridwen," or the Cauldron of Renovation, 
the source of the Greek fable of Medea. Allusions 
are made in the works of the bards to the different 
arts and sciences, as to subjects generally studied and 
familiarly known, while the fragments on astronomy, 
natural history, logic, and cosmography, preserved 
in the British Museum, and referred to by Edward 
Llwyd and others, in their catalogues of Welsh ma- 
nuscripts, are decided proofs that literature had made 
no inconsiderable progress among the Celts. In the 
treatise on Natural Philosophy, published by Lewis, 
the editor of the " Flores Poetarum Britannicorum," 
the scientific terms are of Celtic derivation, and the 
subject is handled in a masterly manner, as in a 
learned language duly cultivated to adorn philosophi- 
cal disquisitions. In the Treatise on Rhetoric, in the 
Welsh language, published by Perri, it is remarkable, 
that the examples adduced, to illustrate the rules, are 
all selected from the works of the ancient British 
Bards, and that the technical terms, as well as the 



* Cambrian Biography, p. 73, &c. By others, Gweno is sup- 
posed to be Venus; Tydain, Taaut, or Hermes; and Gwgon, 
celebrated for rolling an immense stone, Sisiphus. Cambrian 
Biography, p. 161. 






THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. 67 

names of the figures, are also of Celtic origin : which 
may be regarded as demonstrable evidences, that the 
art of rhetoric had been some time cultivated among 
the ancient inhabitants of this island, and that they 
did not borrow it from the Greeks ; otherwise it would 
have appeared in a Grecian garb, and would have 
betrayed, by its language, the source of its nativity. 

Of the style and manner of the Celtic Bards at a 
very early period, a curious instance is given by 
Posidonius in a fragment preserved in Athenaeus. It 
is related that Luernius, who courted popularity by 
his largesses, had already bestowed profusions of costly 
liquors and choice viands on the myriads of Celts 
that followed him, when a bard who had arrived too 
late to share in his bounty, joined his retinue, singing 
to the harp stanzas in praise of his generosity, and 
being observed, had a bag of gold flung to him from 
the carriage : when, in grateful strains, he instantly 
exclaimed, 

AlOTl TCL L\Vri TT]Q yYjQ (i(j) TjQ apfJ.CtTr)\aTEl) 

Xpvaov /cat evepyeffiag avQptoiroic, (f)epei.* 

Where'er thy chariot wheels are found 
To furrow with their track the ground, 
A copious harvest springs to bless 
The world with wealth and happiness. 

This may convey an idea of the style of writing 
prevalent among the bards of that age, as well as 
of the promptitude and fecundity of their talents, 
though this could not be a bard of the higher order ; 
for, by the bardical institutes, they were forbidden to 

* Rev. E. Evan's Dissertatio de Bardis, &c. 



68 LITERARY ACQUISITIONS OF 

prostitute their attainments in panegyrizing any but 
the Omnipotent Author of Nature, and their native 
chieftains, when remarkable for glorious and heroical 
actions. The Romans, during their long residence 
in the British Isles, enervated the manners and en- 
feebled the force of the Britons, as well as decoyed 
the boldest and most athletic of their youths to 
strengthen and enlarge their legions. Whatever the 
country gained in learning and civilization by its in- 
tercourse with the Romans, it lost by the diminution 
of its wealth, and the enervation of its martial power. 
The passion for literature, so prevalent at all periods 
among the Celts, existed prior to the Roman inva- 
sion ; but the taste of their most eminent writers, if 
not corrected, suffered a considerable revolution by 
their long acquaintance with the classic models of 
Greece and Rome. It is remarked by some* late 
authors, that the descendants of the Celts could never 
coincide in opinion with the Greeks and Romans on 
the subject of heroic poetry, which was held in such 
reverence by that primitive nation and its posterity, 
that fable and invention (the essence of the classical 
epopee) were never suffered to make a part of it. 
This may be correctly stated with regard to their 
strict adherence to truth, and their contempt of 
fiction, as only worthy of the lower order of bards, 
to embellish feeble and ill-executed compositions ; but 
they so far concurred with those renowned people, 
as evidently to study their works, though they seldom 
imitated them, and composed epic poems, without 

* Jones's Account of the Welsh Bards, p. 19. 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. 69 

having recourse to imaginary gods and fictitious ac- 
counts of battles. Llywarch Hen, indeed, who was 
a warlike prince, and, though initiated into the rites, 
could not be considered as a regular bard, seems to 
have known little of classical authors, and to have 
been a stranger to all inspiration but what he de- 
rived from his afflictions and from nature. Aneurin, 
the celebrated author of the Gododin, appears to 
have been a finished and accomplished scholar, as 
well as an eminent poet. It is observed by the late 
Mr. Lewis Morris, that what we have of that incom- 
parable poem, is in detached parts, scattered through 
a number of different manuscripts of different 
periods, but that to form an accurate idea of it, the 
whole should be collected, and carefully collated. 
The late Rev. Evan Evans, who transcribed several 
parts of it, from different manuscripts for Mr. Morris, 
was of opinion that, if the whole were collected and 
duly arranged, it would form a complete epic poem 
of singular beauty and unparalleled energy. The 
machinery is more simple and natural than that of 
the Iliad. The author discovers, however, on many 
occasions that he has studied the works of Homer, 
though he has not servilely imitated them. In the 
following passage translated by Mr. Gray, the writer 
evidently indicates his having drank of the Homeric 
fount, and that he was not insensible of the excel- 
lency of its taste : 

Pan gryssiei Garadawg i gdd, 
Mab baedd coed, trychwn, trychiad % 
Tarw byddin yn nhrin gommyniad l 
Ef lithiai wyddgwn oi angad. 

Aneurin's Gododin. 



70 LITERARY ACQUISITIONS OF 

Have ye seen the tusky boar, 
Or the bull with sullen roar, 
On surrounding foe advance, 
So Caradoc bore his lance. 

Gray's Poems. 

The stanza used in the original poem, is what has 
since been chosen by Tasso in his Gierusalemme Li- 
berata. Why Gray should have been tempted to 
reduce the heroic lines of Aneurin into what has 
been called yiamby pamby verses, seems inexpli- 
cable ; but still through the mist of this unequal 
translation, the fire flashing from the following lines 
of Homer may be distinctly perceived : 

£lg ore rig avg apEcriv a'A/a, 7re7roi0ibg. Iliad, xiii. 471. 

As the fell boar on some rough mountain's head 
Arm'd with wild terrors, and to slaughter bred. 

Pope. 

"Ht/re fiovg dyi\y(pi fiiy 'Qoyog Eiiktro wavrwy 
Tavpog. Iliad, ii. 480. 

Like some proud bull that round the pasture leads. Pope. 

In the works of Aneurin's contemporary bards, 
Taliesin and Merlin, the learned reader will discover 
many evident vestiges of a classical education. The 
former frequently mentions the Trojan war; and 
in his enumeration of the transmigrations of his soul, 
in conformity with the doctrine of the Druids, he 
describes his spirit as having once animated one of 
the heroes who distinguished themselves at the siege 
of Troy. His poems abound with Latin phrases, 
allusions to lines in Homer, and to the Odes of 
Pindar, and the following passage is evidently in 
imitation of Virgil : 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. 71 

Y borau ddyw sadwrn cddfawr afu, 
O'r pan ddwyre haul hyd pan gynnu. 

Taliesin. 
Morning rose, the issuing sun 
Saw the dreadful fight begun ; 
And that sun's descending ray 
Clos'd the battle, clos'd the day. 

Whitehead's Translation of Taliesin s Ode, 

Te veniente die, te decedente canebat. Virgil's Georgics. 

His stream of heartfelt praise (with thee begun) 
Flow'd from the rising to the setting sun. 

The animated speech of Urien to his troops in the 
same ode, has indubitably many passages strongly 
resembling the celebrated address of iEneas to the 
Trojans in the eleventh book of the iEneid. 

Dyrchafwn eiddoed odduch mynydd 

Ac ymbortkion wyneb odduch emyl 

A dyrchafwn beleidr odduch ben gwyr, &c. 

Taliesin. 
Rise, ye sons of Cambria, rise, 
Spread your banners to the foe ; 
Spread them on the mountain's brow, 
Lift your lances high in air, 
Friends and brothers of the war, &c. 

Whitehead. 

Arma parate, animis, et spe prcesumite bellum ; 
Ne qua mora ignaros (ubi prim ilm vellera signa 
Annuerint Superi, pubemque educere castris) Sfc. 

;£neid, xi. 18. 
Prepared in arms, pursue your happy chance, 
That none unwarn'd may plead his ignorance, 
And I at heaven's appointed hour may find 
Your warlike ensigns waving in the wind, &c. 

The whole ode may be truly said to contain many 
of the peculiar beauties of Virgil, and all Taliesin's 



72 LITERARY ACQUISITIONS OF 

works are perfectly classical : his imitations of the 
ancients are the imitations of a master ; rather 
happy allusions adapted to the taste and situation of 
the country, than stiff and servile copies. Merlin s 
Orchard has many passages borrowed from the Man- 
tuan bard's account of the Corycian Peasant; and 
from Homer's description of the Garden of Alcinous, 
the fair Gloywadd of the British bard, is the Nau- 
sicaa of the Odyssey. 

In a wide space, and to the sun exposed, 
Another fence, another vineyard closed. Anon. 

Merlin has 

Af alien beraidd a saith ugaint 
Yn gyfoed gyfuwch gyhyd gymmaint, &c. 

Apple-trees branching high and wide, crowned with lovely 
foliage, &c. 

And Homer, 

Ev0a h divdpea Odyssey, vii. 1 15. 

And there tall trees their verdant foliage spread. Anon. 

The British bard : 

Af alien her en bren ! y syddfad 

Nid bychan dy Iwyth sydd ffrwyth arnad, &c. 

^Excellent apple-tree ! thy branches are loaded with delicious 
fruit. 

The Grecian poet : 

And apple-trees with loads of luscious fruit. 

In Merlin we read, 

Af alien beren bren, addfeinus 
Gwasgadfod glodfawr, &c. 
Sweet apple-tree, of tall and stately growth, how admired 
thy shade and shelter : often will mighty lords and princes form 
a thousand pretences for frequenting thy recess. 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. 73 

And Virgil has his, 

Jamque ministrantem platanum potantibus umbras. 

The tree whose hospitable boughs 

A friendly shade on friendly souls bestows. Anon. 

The " Orchard," from the author's distracted state 
of mind, savours as much of genius as of madness ; 
but his madness is the madness of a poet, and his 
poetry the poetry of a scholar. The occasional 
exquisitely plaintive lines so often introduced on 
the death of his nephew, whom he had accidentally 
slain, (a circumstance which deranged the intellects 
of the bard, and gave him the appellation of" Merlin 
the Wild"), are most affectingly interesting ; and it 
is impossible to peruse them without compassionating 
the melancholy state of the writer's disordered mind, 
as well as admiring the beauties of his style and 
the elegance of his taste. No person ever yet felt 
himself equal to the task of attempting it in English 
verse. It is a most beautiful and, at the same time, 
a most difficult subject for a spirited ode, and 
worthy of the pen of a Dryden or a Gray ; but 
perhaps Nathaniel Lee, had he essayed it, would 
have succeeded better than either. 

During the prosperous days of the Celtic muse, 
the principal bards appear to have been intimately 
acquainted with the most distinguished authors of 
Greece and Rome, and, from long acquaintance 
with them, to have contracted something of their 
style and manner. But possessing a rich mine of 
literary stores themselves, and ever cherishing an 
honourable abhorrence of plagiarism, they seldom 
condescended to borrow from them. The following 



74 LITERARY ACQUISITIONS OF 

passage from the works of a late celebrated critic 
will demonstrate that it is no novel opinion which is 
here avowed of the extensive literature, fertile genius, 
and independent spirit of the British bards. " Is it 
not odd that you will find no mention made of Venus 
and Cupid amongst our Britains, though they were 
very well acquainted with the Roman and Greek 
writers :? That god and his mother are implements 
which modern poets can hardly write a love-poem 
without: but the Britains scorned such poor ma- 
chines. They have their Essyllt, Nyf, Enid, Bron- 
wen, and Dwynwen of their own nation, which 
excelled all the Roman and Greek goddesses," &c* 
The political troubles that harassed the Principality 
during the middle ages, gave the Cambrian muse a 
very plaintive air ; and as storms of adversity 
naturally impel the human mind to the calm and 
tranquil anchorage of solemn and religious reflec- 
tions, the poems of that period display a more inti- 
mate acquaintance with the Breviary than with the 
Grecian bard ; with the Roman saints than with the 
heathen deities ; as might be instanced in the works 
of Tudur Aled, and others. Meilyr, a celebrated 
bard of the twelfth century, begins one of his poems 
with the words Rex Regum, &c. ; a sentence bor- 
rowed from the public prayers of the time. Soon 
after the revival of learning in Europe, and about 
the fourteenth century, when the affairs of the 

* Lewis Morris's letter, Cambrian Register for 1795, p. 332. 
Venus and Cupid are often celebrated by the inferior British 
bards, the former under the name of " Gweno," and the latter 
under that of " Sereh," or " Cariad." 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. 75 

Principality wore a favourable aspect, the Cambrian 
bards assumed a bolder strain. 

One of the most eminent bards that distinguished 
this period, was Dafydd ap Gwilym, whose works 
were lately published in London by the ingenious 
Mr. Owen, afterwards Dr. Owen Pughe, author of 
the Welsh Dictionary. In a licentious age, and on 
poetical subjects, those passages afford the keenest 
gratification that transgress the limits of morality, 
and expatiate on the indulgence of the passions and 
the objects of inordinate desire. Gwilym's poems on. 
divine subjects were hardly known, but those on love 
and gallantry were repeated by every peasant in the 
country. In process of time, when his private his- 
tory was forgotten, popular error represented him as 
dissolute in his conduct, and as immoral in some of his 
poetical productions. Hence the indecent and ex- 
travagant anecdotes that have crept into the history 
of his life. But it is now proved from the respectable 
testimony of authors, who derived an account of him 
from his contemporaries, and from tradition* pre- 



* See p. 73. A tradition relative to him in the Cambrian 
Register, Vol. I. p. 415. He was brought up under the care of 
Vaughan of Cringar, ancestor of Lord Carbery, and spent much 
of his time at the court of Ivor Hael, or Ivor the Generous, now 
represented by the Morgans of Tredegaer. It appears, from his 
poems, that he had a couple of horses, was attended by a servant, 
and was a welcome guest in all the first families in Wales and 
on the Borders. The intercourse with Rome rendered the pro- 
gress in literature, made in one part of Europe, then known in 
the other; and it is evident from his works, that he availed him- 
self of every opportunity to improve his mind, and that he was 
acquainted with all the literature of the times. 



7G LITERARY ACQUISITIONS OF 

served in the families he visited, that he was a man 
of irreproachable character, of modest manners, and 
of a studious turn of mind. His looser poems were 
sacrifices offered on the altar of the deified taste of 
the times, in order to soothe the prejudices and gain 
the applause of the vulgar. They were delineations 
of passions which he never felt, and of beautiful 
dulcinias whom he never beheld. His poetical rival, 
Gryffydd Gryg, humorously intimates that, if his 
friend David's heart had been really pierced by the 
darts of love as often as his amorous poems imply, 
it must have resembled a sieve. As he naturally 
expected, however, he acquired more popularity by 
these looser effusions, than by his most correct and 
most elaborate productions on sublimer subjects. 
He appears to have been well versed in the Italian 
language, and to have read Petrarch with peculiar 
attention. Some of his " cywyddau" in praise of 
Morfydd, if not translations, are happy imitations of 
some of that renowned writer's sonnets to Laura. 
Boccace seems to have been one of his favourite 
authors, several of whose tales he has clothed in 
Celtic verse. He was likewise well acquainted with 
Homer. Many passages in his works are embel- 
lished with happy allusions to different remarkable 
incidents in the Iliad. He frequently celebrates 
Virgil under the name of Fferyllt, and Ovid under 
that of Ofydd, the appellations by which they were 
known to the Celtic bards. His humorous descrip- 
tion of love under the imaginary figure of a wayward 
child, which a beautiful nymph left under his care, 
and obliged him to nurse, till the little urchin, by 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. 77 

his constant attention, grew to an enormous size, and 

almost pressed him to the earth by the continually 

increasing weight of its cumbrous bulk, is taken 

from one of the latter's smaller poems, entitled " In 

Amorem." His cywydd, called y " Drych/' or the 

Mirror, is an elegant paraphrase on the tenth ode of 

the fourth book of Horace : — 

Nunc et qui color, est punicece fiore prior rosa, 
Mutatus, Ligurine, in faciem verterit hispidam ; 

*Ni thybias is ddewrdrais ddirdra 
Na bai dig f'wyneb a da 
Oni ynnillais yn amlwg 

Y drych a llyna un drwg 
Dywed im or diwedd 

Y drych nad wyf wych o wedd. 

Trust not to beauty or to youth ; 
The mirror, fam'd for honest truth, 
When thoughtlessly I hoped I bore 
Th' engaging form I bore before, 
Told me the rose of youth was gone, 
And all my boasted colour flown. 
And while its language raised my rage, 
Shew'd me the haggard traits of age. 

Anonymous. 

But there is one circumstance for which it would 
be extremely difficult to account. His fable of " the 
Ant and the Grasshopper" appears to be nearly 
word for word, the same with La Fontaine's fable on 
the same subject. Some of the lines in one of these 
fables seem to be exact translations of the corres- 
ponding lines in the other. The description of the 



* See Owen's Dafydd ap Gwilym, p. 446, 8vo. London, 
1789. Printed for E. Williams, 11, Strand. 



78 LITERARY ACQUISITIONS 0¥ 

ant's comfortable winter abode, in consequence of 
her industry during the summer months ; the misery 
of the grasshopper, shivering with cold, and obliged 
to have recourse to the provident insect's charity ; 
his answer to the latter's question of " how he had 
spent the summer?" that he had " consumed it in 
singing and amusing himself," and the prudent and 
sagacious insect's reply, that " now, then, he might 
go and dance," correspond exactly with the French. 

He Men ! dansez maintenant , &c. La Fontaine. 

Llamma weithian, llammau dda, &c. Dafycld ap Gwilym. 
In singing, ha ! my friend, how gay ! 
The pastimes of thy summer's day ! 
Then leave my door, and skip along, 
Dancing to thy sweet summer's song. 

Anonymous. 

It is not possible, that the Welsh bard should 
have perused the fables of La Fontaine, who existed 
two centuries after him, and it is not very probable, 
that the French fabulist should have borrowed any- 
thing from the works of Dafydd ab Gwilym. The 
only probable solution of this difficulty is, as both 
authors were evidently attached to the writings of 
Boccace, that both of them derived the fable from 
the same Italian source : and as congenial souls will 
sometimes be betrayed into a coincidence of taste, 
that they both happened, in drawing the same por- 
traits, to choose the same drapery. 

From the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries to 
the present period, the allusions to classical authors 
observed in the works of the Welsh bards, are very 



THE DRUIDS AND CELTIC BARDS. 79 

frequent. Rys Prichard,* in his book called " Llyfr 
Ficar," has the following lines : 

Dechreu ddysgu trech yn blentyn, 
'Nabod Duw 'ath Brynwr purwyn, 
Tempra 'th lestr tra for newdd 
AW gwin gwynn o dduwiol gufydd. 

Rys Prichard. 

which are an exact translation of a passage in 
Horace : 

Nunc adbibe puro 



Pectore verba, puer : nunc te melioribus offer. 
Quo semel est imbuta recens, servabit odorem 
Testa diu. 

Let thy pure mind imbibe in youth 
The wine of uncorrupted truth, 
And thy untainted cask will taste 
Of this first seas'ning to the last. 

Anonymous, from R. Prichard' s Poems. 

Fel y dam-sang meirch rhyfelwyr 

Tan eu traed bob math o filwyr 

Felly damsang angan diriaid, 

Y brenhinwedd,fel begeriaid. Rys Prichard. 

As steeds in battle rudely rush, 
And troops of all descriptions crush 
Death treads on subjects as on kings, 
And cots and courts to ruin brings. 

Anonymous. 

Pallida mors cequo pulsat pede pauperum tabernas 

Regumque turres. Horace. 

* He is mentioned in Wood's Athenae Oxonienses, as a man 
of great abilities ; he adapted his language to the capacity of 
the vulgar, and did much good by the purity of his doctrine and 
the excellency of his moral sentiments, and was capable of 
writing with great elegance. 



80 LITEUARY ACQUISITIONS, ETC. 

These lines were written by Rys Prichard about 
the reign of Queen Elizabeth, or King James I. 
From that period the Welsh bards appear to have 
kept up a very close correspondence with the poets 
of Greece and Rome, and to have enriched their 
works with excellent translations from the Greek 
and Roman originals. Translations of several of 
the Odes of Horace and Anacreon have been pub- 
lished in the " Diddanwch Teuluaidd," while ver- 
sions in the ancient British language may be found, 
in manuscript, of every author of eminence, whether 
ancient or modern ; and to use the words of a 
popular writer, " the Welsh make at least as good 
a figure in literature as any of their neighbours." 



81 



HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

RELATIVE TO THE ENERGY, BEAUTY, AND MELODY, 

OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE, 

AND ITS AFFINITY TO THE ORIENTAL LANGUAGES, AND 

THOSE OF THE SOUTH OF EUROPE. 

It is an extraordinary circumstance, studied as the 
ancient British language has been for centuries, 
admired by those who understand it, and despised 
and vilified only by those who are ignorant of it, that 
its beauties have not been asserted, nor its force and 
energy fairly appreciated. The attacks so violently 
made upon it, and the censures with which it has 
been as ignominiously as unjustly branded, have led 
its friends occasionally to undertake its defence ; but 
they have vindicated it so injudiciously, and opposed 
its traducers so feebly, that they have injured rather 
than supported the cause which they have espoused ; 
and, by the awkward position which they have taken, 
have trampled on the prostrate body of the language 
of their country, while they affected to hold up the 
shield of literature in its defence. Ignorance has 
affirmed — for what will not ignorance maintain? — that 
it is a language abounding in consonants, and that it 
is rough and harsh. To these assertions, at first 
blindly advanced, and afterwards maliciously sup- 



82 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

ported, it has been injudiciously said, that its allite- 
rations and other peculiarities compensate for the 
number of its consonants, and its strength of expres- 
sion for its harshness. But whatever its pleasing 
peculiarities or its energy may be, there is no neces- 
sity for admitting that they can be considered only 
as bare compensations for faults, of which it cannot 
be justly accused. Where, for instance, are the proofs 
that it abounds with consonants? If compositions 
can be specified, not only in which there appear a 
less number of consonants than in productions of the 
same number of lines in any other language, but in 
which there are no consonants at all, the charge will 
prove evidently to be as unjustly made by its enemies, 
as it is indiscreetly admitted by its friends. In most 
of the modern Welsh grammars, stanzas of four or 
five lines, as exemplifications of the rules of prosody, 
are inserted, which contain no consonants at all. Of 
this nature is the following epigram on a spider, 
inserted in "Jones's Relics of the Bards," 

O'i wiw wy i weu e d, ai weuau 

O'i wyau e weua, 

E weua ei we aia, 

AH weuau yw ieuau ia. 

From his own eggs the busy worm 
Attempts his hasty webs to form, 
Like rings in ice, they seem to view, 
Beauteous like those and brittle too. 

From these examples, which every person, not 
totally ignorant of the ancient British language, 
knows might be multiplied without end, it will 
appear evident, that to reproach the Welsh with the 
number of their consonants, is as absurd as it is 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 83 

unjust. For what can be more ridiculous, than 
to find authors ignorant of the language preferring 
the charge of multiplicity of consonants against com- 
positions, which upon examination prove to be totally 
devoid of them ? In what other tongue, can stanzas 
of thirty or forty syllables be written in an easy ele- 
gant style, consisting entirely of vowels and of a few 
occasional diphthongs? But if it be thought too 
arduous a task to produce, in any other language, 
so many complete stanzas, entirely destitute of con- 
sonants, let any advocate of a favourite modern 
tongue exhibit if possible any number of lines, in 
any other language, comparable with an equal num- 
ber of Welsh lines, with regard to the paucity of the 
consonants, that occur in the following example ; 
and many instances of a similiar nature might be 
adduced, where only two consonants appear. 

Un wen Helen anwyla* 
A wna aua i ni'n ha." 
A'n hoyw ha oni weni 
A d yn aua i ni, 
Un ael inni lawena 
Ni wen haulwen ein ha\ 

Helen, one gracious smile will bring 

In winter all the charms of spring ; 

And, when thou smil'st not, spring appears 

In the dark garb that winter wears; 

And sorrow ev'ry visage shrouds, 

And summer's suns are lost in clouds. 



* Y and w are considered as vowels, and sounded as such in 
the above examples, w is pronounced like the ou in French, in 
the word out, yes. 



i 



84 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

In the following example only four consonants 
occur, and those four are what are generally deemed 

liquids. 

Meinwen ry eriau mwyna 

AW whi o liw haulwen ha 

AW idl wen, ar ael winau, 

A unir nien yr hen iau ? 

A lenwir i ni leni, 

Ran lawen meinwen a mi ? 

Maen horiau ynran hwyro, 

Rhyw wiw air ar ryw awr rho. 
Fair maid, whose gentle accents please, 
Whose smiles the storms of wrath appease, 
With fairest hair, and nut-brown brow, 
Shall we the vow of lovers vow ? 
Shall this year's circling seasons prove, 
The wish'd completion of our love? 
Our fleeting hours pass fast away 
Shall we, my fair one, still delay ? 

In the works of the different grammarians, who 
have attempted at various periods to elucidate the 
language, many instances occur of whole stanzas 
composed in the most difficult measures known to 
the bards, in which no consonant occurred except the 
letter r, but as that letter is thought by many to have 
a jarring sound, those stanzas are not here inserted. 
It is justly considered by Addison as a mark of 
false wit, to waste time in compositions which can 
admit of only certain select letters, and which care- 
fully reject all others ; the instances produced, how- 
ever, were intended not as proofs of wit, but as apt 
examples selected from poems written in a very dif- 
ficult measure, to demonstrate the paucity of the 
consonants generally used in the Welsh language, 
especially in works on tender and amorous subjects. 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE, 85 

These instances might have been easily multiplied, 
and if examples had been added, where the remaining 
liquids or semi-vowels, and a few of the softer conso- 
nants occur, the proofs would have been so numerous 
as to obscure rather than illustrate the subject ; these 
proofs however are not necessary. The alphabet itself 
demonstrates that the charge of a multiplicity of con- 
sonants is fallacious. There are, strictly speaking, 
only twenty-two* letters in the language, seven of 
which are vowels ; there can remain therefore but 
fifteen consonants, which is a more inconsiderable 
number than most of the European languages are 
obliged to admit. It is true that some of these con- 
sonants must, according to this arrangement, repre- 
sent two different sounds, but that is no more than is 
usually the case in most languages. In the Hebrew, 
for instance, which the ancient British language 
greatly resembles, a point or daggesh inserted in a 
letter, or placed over it, is considered as an indication 
that such letter bears a sound very different from its 
usual pronunciation. And in French, a cedilla 
placed under the letter ^ indicates that it is to be 
sounded like an s, though its general pronunciation is 
like a k. In like manner in the Cambro-British 
language, a small point over the letter d when to be 
sounded in the same manner as the softened th, over 
the letter 1 when aspirated, or over c when to be 
sounded like a guttural, would answer every pur- 



* Twenty-four however is a favourite number with the Welsh, as 
may be seen in their games, their music, and their poetic measures; 
and they generally reckon twenty-four letters in the alphabet. 



86 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

pose of various pronunciation, and render the absurd 
practice of doubling the letters superfluous and un- 
necessary. For, to persons ignorant of the language, 
what can have a stranger appearance, or give a more 
erroneous idea of the sound intended to be conveyed, 
than our dd, 11, ch, &c. That we have, in fact, but 
few consonants is demonstrable, but the absurd mode 
of doubling the characters leads to a misconception 
relative to the ancient British character. In the 
infancy of printing, no types* were cast for the lan- 
guage of the principality of Wales. Welsh books 
were printed therefore with English types ; and the 
casual variation in the sounds of the consonants, was 
distinguished by the reduplication of the letter. 
The first bold critic who deigned to examine this 
spelling, having assumed his spectacles and narrowly 
viewed the newly printed page, hazarded an opinion, 
though he was totally ignorant of the language, 
that it had a great number of consonants, because, 
from the unnecessary redoubling of the characters, 
the consonants naturally appeared to him to be twice 
as numerous as they really were ; an opinion which 
has ever since been bandied about from critic to 



* Csesar observes, that the Britons or Gauls used the Greek 
characters ; they were probably Celtic, and only resembled the 
Greek. When the Romans prevailed in Britain, the Roman 
character was adopted, and only a few of the old characters re- 
tained to express sounds peculiar to the Welsh. This was the 
character in use at the Saxon invasion, which the Saxons, who 
were illiterate, borrowed ; thence this mixed Roman and British 
alphabet has been called the Saxon alphabet, though it is used 
in Irish and Welsh manuscripts written before the arrival of the 
Saxons in this country. 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 87 

critic, and traveller to traveller, till at length, with 
out examination or inquiry, it has become fashion- 
able to assert, that the Welsh abounds in consonants. 
The thoughtless flock of authors on philological sub- 
jects have blindly copied their precursors. The first 
that rushes into error, immediately attracts the atten- 
tion of the whole race, and, let the path into which 
he has strayed, be ever so devious or ever so dan- 
gerous, is instantly followed by all who have an 
opportunity of treading in the same steps or of pur- 
suing the same track. Nothing could be more fo- 
reign to the truth, than the remarks echoed from 
author to author on the number of the Welsh conso- 
nants, excepting the observations made on the 
roughness of the language by those who are unac- 
quainted with it. The censure had been passed, and 
it was implicitly credited, and studiously propagated, 
without any inquiry into its justness, or any doubt of 
its consistency. But it has happened that the same 
writers who have condemned the language for its 
harshness, have likewise noticed the sweetness of its 
melody, the variety of its harmony, and the genero- 
sity of the passions, which it never failed to inspire 
among the people. Effects which every historian ac- 
knowledges, when he relates that at one period, from a 
jealously of the Welsh spirit, bardism had been inter- 
dicted, and the bards prevented from exercising their 
art. If its effects were so great when combined with 
the powers of music, it will not appear probable that 
it should be remarkable for its harshness. No obser- 
vation could be more unfortunate, or more inconsistent 
with truth. The authors who first hazarded these 



88 



HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 



opinions, and those who blindly adopted them, could 
not have been more erroneous in their judgment. 
The language is remarkable for its variety of powers, 
and is not to be surpassed in softness; it is not ex- 
ceeded by the Italian in the tenderness of its expres- 
sions and the sweetness of its sounds, and if any 
appearance of harshness should occur in its pages, it 
must be attributed to the amazing extent of the lan- 
guage, which contains in it sounds and expressions 
of every kind. It at least equals the language of 
Italy in the softness of its sound, is often taken for it 
by those who are but imperfectly acquainted with 
both, and frequently exceeds it in the beauty of its 
phrases and the peculiar felicity of its sentences. 
That this assertion is not without foundation, will 
appear evident to every one who will examine the 
poetry of both countries. The following stanzas are 
selected not for the beauty of their poetry, or for the 
mellifluence of their sound, but because, plain and 
inelegant as their language might appear, they hap- 
pen to abound, in common with a thousand others 
that could be cited, in words bearing a strong resem- 
blance to the Italian, and the whole, collectively 
considered, will hardly be adjudged inferior to it 
in mellifluence of sound or softness of expression. 

Cava, Carar, lodes lana, 
Carar tecca, carar salwa, 
Bustl blin, a dil mil arno 
A gar y galon Ion a garo. 

Let love but once possess thy breast, 
Thy heart can never be at rest ; 
Whether the brown nymph or the fair, 
Or the plain maiden prove thy care, 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 89 

Love will present thee oft with gall, 
But his own sweets correct it all. 

The following extract from an artless pastoral 
boasts an excellence of composition, and bears no 
appearance of studied attempts at softness of sound, 
yet it would be difficult perhaps to find, even in 
Italian writers, so many lines devoid of inharmonious 

expressions. 

Deren nes fy lodes Idn, 
Gywirliw, gdd dy gorlan, 
Mae o lystau melusa 
y Naml o'd'ol, yn yml y da, 
A rhes o fiodan rhosau, 
A hynnyn dew, % nin dau 
JEwn law law, cymmrwn lili, 
A'u blodaun rhannau i ni 
A bysedd rhwymwn bosi, 
Ffel at hyn, nid ffol wyt ti, 
Rhoed yn gibs, fel ar rosyn, 
Gwlwm da ar galon dyn, fyc. 

Come, gentle Shepherdess, divinely fair, 
In these rich meads forsake thy fleecy care ; 
Here are sweet plants, and ev'ry herb they love, 
Here let them brouse while we at pleasure rove, 
And cull the lily and the blushing rose, 
And the pale pink, and ev'ry flow'r that blows : 
O'er ev'ry field in quest of flow'rs I'll haste, 
While thou shalt bind them with thy wonted taste, 
For these seem, Shepherdess, thy fav'rite arts, 
To bind up boquets, and imprison hearts. 

Should the instances that have been given be con- 
sidered as composed in some measure on amorous 
subjects, and should they for that reason be looked 
upon as intended to convey sounds possessed of 
greater softness than the works of the bards in gene- 
ral may be able to boast, the following stanzas, ex- 



90 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

tracted from a poem addressed to Parry, the late 
celebrated harper, a little before his death, if not very 
musical, will be sufficient at least to shew that soft 
sounds in this beautiful language are not confined to 
subjects connected with the tender passion. 

Wis tecca para Parri, i hwylio, 

Ar wyliau'r cwmpeini 

Mai eos y melusi, 

Swn tannau ein telynnau ni 
Mae dy delynwen leni, ifoli, 

Ar fil yn rhagori 

Wei etto, mae hwyl i ti 

A dawn net in denu ni 
Y bys fel yn cwrlo, dwylo 

Ar y delyn yn dawnsio 
Dwrn weile, ai fawd arno, 
A'i lais draw, melus ei dro, Sfc. 

Leave us not, Parry ; for thy skill 
Improves our tuneful efforts still, 
As the sweet nightingale improves 
The native music of our groves. 
Thy lyre o'er ev'ry lyre prevails, 
Thy praise resounds thro' all our vales, 
Thy talents fascinate the throng — 
All are enchanted with thy song ; 
Thy fingers struggle with the strings, 
Till thy tried hand indignant rings 
Such magic peals, that ev'ry ear 
Wonders, and listens still to hear, &c. 

But composed on a subject bearing some alliance 
to music, these stanzas may still perhaps be consi- 
dered as more harmonious, and abounding in softer 
sounds, than is customary in compositions on less 
tuneful subjects; the following therefore is adduced 
as an unobjectionable example, as it is part of a 
poem on the gout, a subject it will readily be ac- 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 91 

knowledged, neither gentle in its manner, nor posses- 
sing any thing attractive or harmonious in its nature. 

Poen* inia blin yn blino, poena 
I tecca in teccio, 

Poen drud lun, i Pen, i droed lanno, 
Poen ir aelodau pan hir ledo, 
Poen in dala pen a dwylo, 
Poen in hel i pen a cuilo 
Pui her i gesti gostio, guesta, 
Pan ranna poen arno, SfC. 

The heaviest pain that haunts us here, 
Is a pain the fair may bear, 
A pain the rich may often know 
When Fortune's fav'ring breezes blow ; 
Too well they feel, that human bliss 
Is dearly bought, who suffer this ; 
From head to foot it swiftly flies, 
And every joint and member tries ; 
Then on the foot or on the hand 
Unsparingly it takes its stand, 
Severely on its victim bears, 
And melts the stoutest heart to tears. 
If this pain be the glutton's guest, 
Who would not fly the splendid feast ? 
If such the portion pleasures give, 
Who would in vicious pleasures live ? 

In this passage, though from the nature of the 
subject much softness of sound could not have been 
expetced, yet many of the words are Italian, several 
others bear a strong resemblance to those of that 
language, and the stanza in its structure, number of 
lines, and identity of rhyme, appears extremely 



* In this example as y, and w are not letters often used in Ita- 
lian, i is placed for y, and u for w, for the difference of pronun- 
ciation is hardly perceptible. 



92 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

similar to the Italian poetry at present in frequent 
use. It is one of the four-and-twenty measures, an- 
ciently in fashion among the earlier inhabitants of 
the British Isles — but rendered considerably more 
difficult, by the stricter rules needlessly adopted in 
subsequent ages — and is similar to that used by 
Tasso in his " Gierusalemme Liberata." The metre 
in which the " Gododin," a British epic poem of the 
sixth century, is written, bears a still stronger resem- 
blance to the measure selected by Tasso. Very little 
doubt can be entertained that the metre which dis- 
tinguishes the " Gierusalemme Liberata " is of Celtic 
origin, and that its parent is what is still so much 
admired by the lovers of the muses among the Cam- 
bro-Britons. Not that the Italians derived it imme- 
diately from the bards of the principality of Wales, 
but that they inherited it from the Longobardi, a 
Celtic tribe, that during the decline of the Roman 
empire issued from the German forests, depopulated 
a considerable portion of Italy, and gave its name to 
Lombardy, that part of the country which borders on 
the river Po. This tribe was esteemed very power- 
ful, and occupied a part of Germany in the time of 
Tacitus. That eminent historian describes it as an 
inconsiderable tribe as to population, and as owing 
its weight in the Germanic scale to its bold and enter- 
prising spirit, rather than to the number of its forces 
or the extent of its territories. When possessed of 
the fertile regions washed by the Po, they still per- 
sisted in their ancient customs, and preserved their 
original habits, their love of poetry, and their enthu- 
siastic ardour for music, and in a short period the 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 93 

soft infection of their manners spread itself over the 
neighbouring country. The introduction of the harp 
on all festive occasions, the universal partiality for it, 
which was observable soon after that period, and the 
prevalence of the custom of accompanying it with 
the voice, are strong marks of a Celtic origin. The 
impromptu poetical effusions, and their musical ac- 
companiments, prevalent in Italy in the middle ages, 
have their source, no doubt, in the Pierian spring 
which the Longobardi, or tall bards, so liberally 
quaffed. Lord Lyttelton* remarks, that when he 
first passed some of the Welsh hills, and heard the 
harp, and the beautiful female peasants accompany- 
ing it with their melodious voices, he could not help 
indulging in the idea that he had descended the 
Alps, and was enjoying the harmonious pleasures of 
the Italian paradise. Howel, the author of the Dic- 
tionary of the principal languages of Europe, ob- 
serves that he was forcibly struck with the similarity 
of features, which he at least imagined the peasants, 
in some districts in Italy, bore to the inhabitants of 
some parts in the principality of Wales. An obser- 
vation in which he is supported by the subsequent 
remarks of Mrs. Piozzi on what she saw in the course 
of her travels through Italy. The little intercourse 
they have had with foreign nations, and their ori- 
ginal descent from the same Celtic source, are the 
principal reasons assigned for this visionary simili- 
tude. The identity of their origin is imagined to 
be in a great measure demonstrated by the similarity 



See Lord LytteltorTs Letters from Wales, &c. 



94 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

of their customs, their love of music,* their attach- 
ment to the muses, the sprightliness of their disposi- 
tion, and the simplicity of their manners. The 
analogy which the favourite metres of the ancient 
British bards bore to the Italian has been noticed 
by several critics, particularly by Dr. John David 
Rhys, in his elaborate Latin treatise on the grammar 
of the Welsh language. He analyzed several of 
the corresponding stanzas of both nations, descanted 
on the analogical properties of each, and assigned 
reasons for the occasional difference observable be- 
tween them. Few men ever possessed greater cri- 
tical acumen, or could be better qualified than he 
was, by his great proficiency in both languages, to 
state their comparative merits. He was educated at 
the University of Sienna, where he resided many 
years, and he was so well versed in Italian literature, 
that he was chosen Professor of the language. He 
adduces several instances, particularly in the earlier 
and middle centuries, in which a distinct analogy is 
perceptible in the prosody and the poetical taste of 
the two nations. In the most common colloquial 
phrases in the modern Welsh, an evident simi- 
larity to the Italian language is obvious to every 
discerning ear ; nothing is more usual than to hear 



* Jack Owen having gone to London to see an opera, while a 
student of Oxford, was so agitated at the performance, (which he 
always was at fine music,) that he drew the attention of an Italian 
gentleman in the pit, who addressed him first in his own lan- 
guage, then in broken English, " Signeur, Sir, Sir, be you von 
Italiano ? " " No," said Jack, not liking to lose a note of the 
music, "don't tease me, I am a Welshiano" 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 95 

the peasants accosting each other in some such ex- 
pressions, " Suf rwyt ti, DeioV " Ble mae GuttoV 
" Sut mae Nell "n tyccio ? " # &c. Strangers to both 
languages are apt not unfrequently to mistake the 
Welsh for the Italian. Three templars, natives of 
the Principality, once on a time, returning from 
Vauxhall, exhilarated by the juice of the grape, had 
a dispute with an equal number of citizens in a 
similar situation, and it was decided on the spot by 
an appeal to their respective pugilistic powers. Two 
of the Cambro-Britons proved victorious, but the 
third appeared to have met with a doughtier antago- 
nist ; his companions considering it ungenerous and 
dishonourable to afford him manual assistance, gave 
him a little friendly advice, exclaming, " Dal atto, 
dal atto, at i vol o ! " " Adhere to him, adhere to him, 
aim your blows at his chest." He took the hint, 
changed his mode of attack, and brought his oppo- 
nent to the ground, who, seated in the dust like Dr. 
Slop in the mire, scratched his head, vociferating, 
" Hang that Italian, and his outlandish lingo: why 
did he interfere ? if he had been silent, I think I 
should have mastered my man." The Welsh in 
common conversation often use Italian words. Two 
young men at Oxford were amusing themselves at 



* " How dost thou, David?" Where is Griffith ?" " How does 
Helen get on ?" Let this be translated into any other European 
language, and the superior softness will be admitted. The fami- 
liar appellation of every name in Welsh terminates in a vowel, 
which is the case likewise with the plural of most nouns, and the 
first person of the present tense, and the imperative of most 
verbs. 



9G HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

the old school-play of capping Latin verses, where 
one cites a line beginning with the same letter 
which terminated that of his opponent. A third per- 
son accidentally coming into the room, asked if they 
did not consider it a degradation in collegians to 
waste their hours in an amusement calculated only 
for the third or fourth form of a school. " Oh !* da 
capo,''' replied one of the poetical combatants, and 
continued the contest. The following specimen of 
words used in both languages will demonstrate how 
near they approach each other. 

ITALIAN. WELSH. 

Capella, a chapel, Capela, chapels. 

Cantara, to sing, Cantwr, a singer. 

Campione, a champion, Campio, to act the champion. 

Dio, God, Duw, God. 

Ecclesia, a church, Eglwysi, churches. 

Finestra, a window, Ffenestri, windows. 

Fossa, a ditch, Ffosdu, ditches. [honey 

Mele, honey, Mel, honey, mela, to gather 

Mare, the sea, Mor, the sea. 

Penna, the top, Pennau, heads. [mountains. 

Penna de Monta, Pennau Mynyddau, tops of 

Ponta, a bridge, Pontau, bridges. 

Picca, a sharp beak, Picca, sharp beaked. 

Pescata, fishing, Pysgotta, fishing. 

Pasqua, Easter, Pasq, pasga, to observe Easter. 

Rhosa, a rose, Rhosau, roses. 

Spiritolo, spiritual, Ysbrydoli, to spiritualize. 

These few words may serve to demonstrate the 
resemblance which the modern Italian bears to the 



* They were natives of the principality of Wales ; "'da capo'* 
in the Cambro-British language implies, " it is good to cap 
verses." 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 97 

ancient British. To collect every corresponding word 
would be to form a Lexicon rather than to write an 
essay. In the arrangement of words in composition, 
the construction of phrases, and the formation of sen- 
tences,* the similarity is very obvious ; but the Ita- 
lian having arrayed itself after the fashion of the 
modern languages, much of the elegant simplicity of 
the eastern style is lost, and though the materials of 
which the habiliment is manufactured is a counter- 
part of the Welsh, the fantastical manner in which it 
has been fashioned, and the superfluity of unneces- 
sary ornaments with which, in conformity to modern 
customs, it has been encumbered, render the alliance 
between the two languages less suspected, and their 
mutual similitude less striking. The ancient British 
will not however suffer from comparison, when exa- 
mined together with this or any other modern lan- 
guage. It is capable of every ornament of which 
the others can boast, and when the subject suits, it 
possesses, from the eastern construction still belong- 
ing to it, a softness of expression and a tenderness of 
diction, that modern tongues fruitlessly attempt to 
imitate. Very little doubt can remain that the mo- 
dern Italian owes its mellifluence of sound to the 
manners and the language of the Celtic tribe of the 
Longobardi, who, being all enthusiastically attached 
to the musical and poetical pursuits of bardism, 
adapted their language to the rules of poetry, and to 
the melody of the harp, and rejected most words that 



* Whole Italian sentences are sometimes met with that are 
perfect British, as " Asene di Balaam," Balaam's Ass. 

H 



98 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

did not either terminate in a vowel, or admit of an 
harmonious cadence. They lost however in process 
of time much of their own language, and adopted 
many terms from the Latin, and not a few from the 
language of the barbarous nations that at different 
periods over-ran and depopulated Italy. Hence it 
is that in poetical compositions, where sweetness of 
sound is an object of attention, the Welsh in mas- 
terly hands is capable of a greater degree of softness 
and tender felicity of expression, than the Italian. 
It is a circumstance well known to those who are ac- 
quainted with the inexhaustible resources of the an- 
cient British language, that entire poems, or treatises 
of considerable length, may be composed in it, with- 
out admitting any but the softer consonants, or 
adopting any word that does not possess a mellow 
and harmonious sound. Moreover, its native peculiar 
powers are so remarkable, that a proficient in the 
language, who has a talent for composition, may pro- 
duce a tract in it, in either prose or verse, of no in- 
considerable magnitude, where no words shall appear 
but such as are of acknowledged Italian extraction. 
The powers of the ancient British in fact have never 
been fairly tried : a few fugitive pieces have been 
circulated in verse, where an attempt appears to have 
been made at elegance of style, and softness of ex- 
pression, as in Richards' Pastorals, and some others, 
which display no ordinary merit ; but very few of 
late years in prose, deserving of particular attention, 
as elegant classical compositions, unless we except 
" Bardd Cwsg,' 1 or " the Visions of the Bard," and 
one or two more. Justice to the abundant resources 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 99 

of the language, however, renders it necessary to 
observe that more may be effected than has ever yet 
been attempted. But we have had no munificent 
patrons, no De Medicis, no Leo the Tenth, to foster 
our youthful poets, or shelter and cherish the rising 
genius of Welsh literature. All that has been effected, 
has been undertaken to gratify the taste of a few 
patriotic individuals, or to indulge a spirit of emula- 
tion raised between rival provinces, by no very im- 
portant attempts to recover some pieces of antiquity, 
and point out a few beauties in a language of remote 
origin and singular construction, and to demonstrate 
the unnatural prejudices of those, who can discover 
innumerable beauties in foreign tongues, while 
they are strangers to the elegance, and unacquainted 
with the persuasive softness of their own. During the 
reign of some of the most liberal of the Welsh 
princes, various instances occurred, of men who 
raised themselves to eminence by the beauties of 
their compositions, and who placed in a most con- 
spicuous point of view, the superior charms and ex- 
pressive tenderness that mark their language. Lite- 
rature was then, in some measure, encouraged and 
genius protected, but the taste of that period was so 
defective or so vitiated, the progress made in the 
sciences was so inconsiderable, or so obstructed by 
the tumults and dissensions of the times, that the 
most distinguished of those ages, though confessedly 
characterized by many beauties, are such as cannot 
be expected to be the haunts of the Graces, that 
smile on the chaste and classical labours of the pre- 
sent day. In simplicity, in bold and sublime con- 



100 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

ceptions, in an animated and expressive diction, they 
are justly and deservedly admired. But in correct- 
ness of style, in smoothness and elegance of language, 
they differ materially from the classical compositions 
of a more modern period. Even then, however, from 
the peculiar beauties of the language, in defiance of 
the homely garb in which she was clad, innumerable 
pleasing traits were discernible, and notwithstanding 
the many cacophonies in which that age delighted, 
many melodious passages occur in the productions 
of the best authors, some as soft and mellifluous as 
any of the most admired pieces of which Italy can 
boast. Petrarch did not celebrate the beauties of his 
Laura, in more numerous or more admired composi- 
tions, than the British bard has offered as a tribute 
to the charms of his lovely Morfudd ; and Petrarch 
can hardly be said to have surpassed him in harmony 
of periods or mellifluence of verse. On one occasion 
Gwilym describes his happiness in being permitted 
to converse with his beautiful mistress, and compares 
the pleasing softness of her language to a vernal 
shower of honey-dew, falling among the leaves of 
the forest. 

A dil mel ar y dail man. 
Her gentle accents as she spoke 
Seem'd dew-drops on the vernal oak. 

On another occasion he describes her head-dress 
and the beautiful colour of her hair, and inquires with 
his usual naivete if it were fabricated of ripe hazel- 
nuts, or of thread composed of the finest ductile gold. 

A'i plisg y gneuen wisgi ? 
A'i dellt aur yiu dy wallt di ? 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 101 

Did the ripe hazel lately shed 
Its envied honours on thy head ? 
Or did kind nature's hand enfold, 
Thy hair in slend'rest threads of gold ? 

Juvenile indiscretion having involved the bard in 
inextricable difficulties, a legal process having en- 
cumbered him with debt, and an enormous fine, 
which he was condemned to liquidate, having com- 
pleted his apparent ruin, the men of Glamorgan 
generously united to relieve him from his embarrass- 
ments, and restore him to happiness and the unmo- 
lested enjoyment of his muse. The first effect of 
his gratitude was a poetical address to the sun, pray- 
ing it might for ever shed its choicest lustre, and its 
most benignant influence on the men of Glamorgan, 
and that a pernicious blight, or an unfavourable sea- 
son might nev,er be experienced in that paradise. 
The entire poem is admirable, and may be considered 
as decidedly one of the finest compositions in the 
Welsh, or perhaps in any language. It is not so 
much a studied piece of poetry, as a rapturous burst 
of gratitude from the heart. In allusion to the fair 
cause of his difficulties, he addresses the fountain 
of light as a female, and among many other beautiful 
expressions he has 

Em loywaf ami oleuni, 

Ymmerodres tes wyt ti, fyc. 
Fair Empress ! whose resplendent sway 
Rules the bright confines of the day, 
To the rich gems that deck thy brow, 
Summer's celestial light we owe, &c. 

Gwyddno, a celebrated chieftain of Ceredigion, 
having lost the whole of his extensive territories by 



102 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

an unexpected inundation of the sea, his son Elphin, 
from the highest expectations, was reduced to the 
necessity of maintaining himself and family by the 
produce of a weir, formed on a part of his father's 
ruined estate. Having on a particular occasion a 
considerable sum of money to pay, he sent his 
men to the weir with the eager desire of converting 
the contents of their net into something more sub- 
stantial and profitable. They exerted themselves 
during the greatest part of the night, and towards 
morning, instead of a valuable draught of fish, they 
returned with a leathern coracle that had been turned 
adrift, and with a little boy whom they had found in 
it, and who afterwards proved to be the renowned 
and unrivalled Taliesin. While Elphin lamented 
his disappointment, the almost infant bard exclaimed. 

Elphin dcg taw ath ivylo, 

Ni welwyd yngored Wyddno, 

Erioed cystal a heno, &c. 
Grieve not, Elphin, grieve no more, 
Heaven shall bless thy little store, 
And what this night's fortune found, 
Shall with choicest gifts be crown 'd, &c. 

The Welsh critics are profuse in their praise of 
this first effort of Taliesin's muse ; and historians 
add, that Elphin's protection of the poetical orphan 
terminated in the renovation of his fortune, and the 
revival of the former splendour of his family. It is 
evident that whatever beauty # this and most of the 

* The reader is referred to the 1st vol. of the Cambrian Re- 
gister, and to Walter's Dissertation on the Welsh language, for 
observations on other beautiful lines, and on the celebrated 
musical couplet, — 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 103 

preceding extracts can claim, they were not the 
result of literary toil, nor were they the offspring of 
extraordinary poetical judgment. They were the 
effusions of nature, and art hardly afforded any aid 
in adding ornaments to their native dress. What- 
ever ease or elegance of diction they possess, must 
therefore be attributed to the sweet softness and har- 
mony of the Celtic tongue, the musical tendency of 
which is such, that the poet must be peculiarly un- 
fortunate, who does not enliven his toil with some 
tuneful lines, let his ear be ever so inharmonious, or 
his mind ever so uninfluenced by the charms of poe- 
tical numbers. In prose the same felicity of expres- 
sion frequently occurs, though few instances can be 
given of a laboured attempt at elegance or softness 
of language. 

Roberts, a member of the university of Sienna, 
in his admirable Welsh grammar, published in the 
fifteenth century, has produced a successful transla- 
tion of Cicero's Dialogue de Senectute, &c. In this 
translation are some beautiful passages, though he 
seems to attend more to the sense of his author, than 
to the harmony of his periods. Perry, in his Treatise 
on Rhetoric, in the Welsh language, printed about 
the conclusion of the seventeenth century, has occa- 
sionally some very musical periods. Lewis of Caio, 
father of the late vicar of that parish, and editor of a 
collection of Welsh poems, called " Flores Poetarum 
Britannicorum," presented to the public, in the lan- 

Mel o leisiau me I u son, 
Mil o hyd symmola hon,&c. 



104 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

guage of the Principality, an excellent Treatise on 
Natural Philosophy, which he modestly denominated 
" Briwsion odd la r fwrdd y dysgedigion" or Frag- 
ments from the Table of the Literati. It is an admi- 
rable epitome of every thing that is valuable in the 
philosophical discoveries of the last century and the 
preceding, and is as much admired for the beauty of 
its language, as for the compendious fecundity of its 
pages, while its style seems as artless as its contents 
are useful. Theophilus Evans, in his historical trea- 
tise entitled " Drych yprif oesoedd" or a View of the 
Earlier Ages, displays great brilliancy of composition, 
though, from the general negligence of his manner, 
it seems to be the offspring of chance, rather than 
the effect of any regular design. In the multifarious 
theological, scientific, and miscellaneous works, re- 
cently published, many passages occur, which al- 
though not composed, perhaps^ with much atten- 
tion to elegance of diction or mellifluence of sound, 
yet appear hardly inferior in smoothness of language 
and harmony of periods, to any production of the 
most celebrated Italian authors. 

The third Vision of Bardd Cwsg, or the Visions 
of the Bard, opens with a beautiful period, which 
has been deservedly admired and frequently imi- 
tated. But this was evidently the effect of labour 
and of a correct and cultivated taste. It is a 
description of Spring. The scene is placed on 
the banks of the Severn ; and the author seems to 
have put forth all the powers of his pen to describe 
the brilliancy of the prospect, the verdure of the 
meads, the music of the proves, and the genial 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 105 

warmth of the season. But to display the native 
beauties of the ancient British language, a less 
laboured period will afford a more just though a 
simpler representation of the softness it possesses, 
as well as of the uncultivated charms with which 
it is endowed. Near the commencement of the first 
Vision, the author describes himself as having been 
surprised by the resistless influence of the soporific 
powers, and humourously adds, " ac ynghysgod 
blinder daeth fy Meistr Cwsg yn lledradaidd, im 
rhwymo, ac ai agoriadau plwm fe gloes ffenestri fy 
Hygaid, cCm holl synwyrau eraill yn dynn ddiogel. 
Etto gwaith ofer oedd iddo geisio clo'ir Enaid, a 
fedrfyw a thrafaelio heb y corph" " Under covert 
of fatigue, Morpheus clandestinely approached, and 
bound me with his usual expedition ; and with the 
leaden power of his keys, he closed the windows of 
my visual chambers, and effectually locked up all 
my faculties. But he found it a vain attempt to 
endeavour to confine the soul, which, without the 
assistance of the body, knows well how to enjoy 
itself, to change its situation, and expatiate at plea- 
sure." In this sentence, which certainly was written 
without any attention to harmony of words, the 
expressions " agoriadau" "synwyrau" " rhwymo" 
" travadio" &c, are as musical as any of which 
the Italian can boast ; while, had the intention been 
to avoid every harsh word, " llygaid" might have 
been changed for " golygon" and " daeth fy Meistr 
Cwsg yn lledradaidd" for u yna deuar Duwiaur 
Cwsg yn, dan ddistawir cwbl on deutu" So copious 
is the language, that for every object, several diffe- 



JOG .ISTOIilCAL ANECDOTES 

rent expressions present themselves ; and a writer, 
who is attentive to the strength or beauty of his 
style, may at pleasure render his sentences expres- 
sive as the Greek, rough as the German, lively as 
the French, or soft and harmonious as the Italian. 

But here it may be naturally enquired, if the 
Cambro-British language be so remarkable for the 
smoothness and modulation of its periods, by what 
unfortunate concurrence of circumstances has it hap- 
pened that most of the critics who have had occasion 
to advert to it, have conspired to represent it as a 
rough and inelegant language? To this it may be 
answered, that too many persevere in maintaining 
the opinions of their predecessors, without examina- 
tion and without reflection, while others presume to 
judge of a language, without acquiring any know- 
ledge of it ; and because, to adapt the sound to the 
English characters, several letters may occasionally 
be used to express a single syllable, they hastily 
conclude that the ancient British must be rough and 
inharmonious. But the fact, on the contrary, is, 
that no language can naturally be softer or more 
musical ; and that it has cost the exertion of the 
first-rate talents for many centuries, to give it the 
asperity which it now apparently wears in some 
modern compositions. From the number of words 
terminating in vowels, the formation of the plural 
by the addition of another syllable with a vocalic 
termination, and the graceful fall of the accent in 
most words on the penultima, the natural tendency 
of the language seemed to be to tenderness and 
to harmonious cadences. The bards of a martial 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 107 

people, therefore, in order that effeminate sounds 
might not weaken the warlike energy of their youth, 
laboured to give their compositions all the vigour 
and masculine expression in their power ; and for 
many centuries, to produce a soft and tender period 
among some of the Celtic tribes, would have been 
as disgraceful, as it would have been among some 
ancient states to add another string to the lyre. 
Tacitus describes the whole military line, while 
rushing forward to action, as repeating in concert 
some martial composition of their divinely-inspired 
bards, and as forming their opinions of the success 
of the battle from the thunder of its sound, and 
the rapturous lightning it shot through their bo- 
soms : — " Ituri in prcelium canunt. Su?it illis hcec 
quoque carmina, quorum relatu quern Barditum vo- 
cant, accendunt aminos, futurceque pugnce fortunam 
ipso cant u augur antur terrent enim, trepidantve, 
prout sonuit acies. JS T ec tarn voces illce, quam vir- 
tutes concentus videntur, affectatur prcecipue aspe- 
ritas soni, et fr actum murmur, object is ad os scut is, 
quo plenior et gravior vox repercussu intumescat." 
" When they march to battle, they rouse their souls 
to valour, by singing, as in general concert, some 
verses composed by those whom they call bards ; 
and they conjecture the success of the day, from 
the force and energy of their warlike song. And 
they strike terror, or are seized with trepidation, as 
the musical thunder of the line sounds feebly, or 
echoes tremendously : nor does that concert seem 
so much an exertion of their voices, as an essay of 
their valour, and a prelude to the battle. They 



108 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

particularly affect asperity and roughness of sound, 
a broken and frequently interrupted murmur, and 
they apply their shields to their mouths that the 
reverberation of their rough notes may cause the 
natural force of their voices to seem louder and more 
terrible." The same extraordinary partiality for 
asperity of language has continued from that age to 
the present ; and in a tongue remarkable for har- 
mony of periods and modulation of numbers, to pro- 
duce compositions distinguished for their energy, 
their terrific cadences, and for heroic and enthusi- 
astic spirit, was considered as a proof of genius, and 
as an indication of a correct taste. Gwilym's cele- 
brated ode, at the repetition of which by a dat- 
geiniwr, or rhapsodist, his poetical rival, Rhys 
Meigen, fell down and instantly expired, is as re- 
markable for .the roughness of its verse, as it is for 
the extravagant sublimity of its fancy. It has gene- 
rally been known by the name of the " Test of 
Sobriety," because it was deemed impossible that 
any person, unless perfectly sober, and capable of 
correctly exerting all the organs of speech, could 
ever accurately rehearse it. 

The late Rees Jones, Esq., of Blaenau, who was 
much admired for his bardic compositions, and who, 
a few years since, paid the debt of nature at a very 
advanced age, in the mountainous parts of Merio- 
nethshire, published a quarto volume, of what he 
entitled " The Achievements of the Bards," in which 
are some poetical pieces of great antiquity, remark- 
able for the asperity and for the studied difficulty 
of their numbers. Rhynnu, in the Celtic language, 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE 109 

meant to grow stiff, as from the effect of cold or 
dreadful horror ; and the Runic or Rynnic verses, of 
which so much has been said, were some of these diffi- 
cult poetical compositions, deemed impossible to have 
been achieved by human art, and therefore attri- 
buted to the powers of magic. The rapid repetition 
of them was considered as an incantation, and was 
supposed to strike those against whom they were 
directed with stupefaction, or to petrify them with 
horror. But these extraordinary efforts of the bards, 
a race of men that dedicated their whole lives to the 
art of composition, cannot surely be regarded as 
proofs of the native roughness of the language. It 
is an evidence of its versatility, and not of its as- 
perity and natural harshness. Though, from its 
copiousness, it is capable of contending in roughness 
with the less polished of the Northern tongues, it 
is calculated also to vie with the Italian, or with 
any of the most admired Southern languages, in 
smoothness of sentences and melody of sound ; 
circumstances which forcibly speak in favour of its 
musical resources, and its aptitude for poetical com- 
positions. To be able to sink with ease into the 
lowest and deepest notes, and to rise when neces- 
sary to the highest and the most pleasing, is a 
stronger proof of a musical capacity, than to possess 
merely skill enough to excel in a treble part. The 
wonderful extent of the Celtic tongue, and the 
agreeable variety which it justly boasts, can be 
known only to those who are well acquainted with 
it, and who are conversant with the best authors, 
whose productions have for so many centuries con- 



1 10 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

tributed to its melioration and to its renown. The 
copiousness of the fountain may be known, in some 
measure, by the number and the profundity of the 
streams that owe to it their origin. 

The Southern tongues are no less derived from 
the Celtic than the Northern ; though the latter, 
having flowed to a remoter distance from the source, 
have been more affected by external circumstances, 
by change of climate, and by the influx of streams 
from other fountains. That most of the languages 
of the North were of Celtic origin, and, at no very 
remote period, were intelligible to the inhabitants 
of the principality of Wales, is evident from a pro- 
clamation of one of the Welsh Princes, who ap- 
pointed a public session of the Bards, to regulate 
the laws of poetry and music. To this harmonic 
convention, or Musical Festival, the Bards of the 
Isle of Man, of Ireland, of Scotland, and of Scan- 
dinavia, were respectively invited. Soon after that 
period, the Welsh language became fixed. This is 
manifest from the number of Lexicons and Gram- 
mars constantly published in the language by the 
most learned men of their time, and from the Sacred 
Scriptures having been translated into Welsh, and 
from Divine service having been regularly performed 
in Welsh in the Churches of the Principality, for 
more than two centuries and a half ; and these con- 
curring circumstances have greatly contributed to the 
stability and the general diffusion of the language. 
From the earliest dawn of literature, and the inven- 
tion of printing, Welsh students in the universities 
of Italy, and in various seminaries of learning on the 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. Ill 

Continent, had several works of utility and eminence 
published in their native tongue, which prevented 
its fluctuation, and so firmly established it, that no 
very material alteration has been observed in it for 
the last four centuries. Some of the other Northern 
languages have hardly been committed to writing at 
all, and only an inconsiderable number of books has 
been printed in any of them till within these two last 
centuries. Still the identity of the language is dis- 
cernible to every scholar. Various words in the 
languages still spoken in Sweden and Norway, cor- 
respond with the British. In the Erse and the 
Irish, the pronunciation is a little different, as the 
English is among the peasantry in some of the 
counties of England : in other respects, the language 
is radically the same, and the inhabitants of the 
mountains of Wales and Scotland, after the inter- 
course of a few months, are mutually intelligible. 
Soldiers of Highland regiments- that have settled in 
the Principality, have been known to acquire the 
language so completely, that they could not be dis- 
tinguished from the natives ; and some Irish gentle- 
men have observed that their Welsh servants, when 
resident in a remote part of Ireland, have attained 
the knowledge of the Irish tongue in a very short 
period. The difference, in fact, is very immaterial 
between the two dialects of the Celtic tongue, and 
is rather occasioned by the various pronunciations 
of certain words, the want of frequent commu- 
nication, the fluctuation of the Irish language, 
the decay of literature, and the sterility of popular 
publications, than by any essential discrepancy. 



112 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

The words, Ysgybor, a barn ; Tarw, a bull ; Ysga- 
da?i, herrings ; for example, are the same in both 
languages : but the Irish place the accent on the 
last syllable, and the Welsh on the penultima. The 
celebrated antiquary, Edward Llwyd,* in his " Archai- 
ologia Britannica," has, from a visionary design to 
form a system of his own, endeavoured to point out 
a distinction between the two languages : but it is 
a distinction without a difference ; for the words 
which he mentions as preserved only in the Irish, 
are Celtic words still understood in Wales, and not 
a few of them are used in common conversation in 
some parts of the country. 

The Erse, the common language of the Highlands 
of Scotland, appears to be less corrupted, and to 
bear more affinity to the W elsh than the common 
Irish ; as Craig, a rock ; Mor, for Mawr, great ; 
Llong, a vessel ; Ystraeth, a plain or vale near the 
sea. The principal difference is in the mode adopted 
in the Highlands, of converting the Celtic P into H, 
as Hib, for Pib, a pipe ; or more generally into a C, 



* See " Vindication of the Celts," 8vo. 1803, published for E. 
Williams, Strand, p. 144. In a conversation on the subject with a 
well-informed Irish gentleman, the words in both languages were 
allowed to be the same ; for instance, he called a cock, ceiliawg, 
and a turkey-cock, ceiliog-twrci and ceiliawg -ffrengig ; both which 
are used in Welsh : for in that language Ffrengig is used for 
any thing large, as cnau, nuts, cnau ffrengig, French nuts, or 
walnuts. More words have been lost in Ireland than in Wales 
from their want of books. Clock, a bell, is hardly known there at 
present ; but it formerly meant clock. Cloch Badrig, Patrick's 
Bell, is a hill of conical form in the county of Connaught. 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 



113 



as Cen mawr, the name of one of the kings of Scot- 
land, for Pen mawr, great head ; Centire or Centeri, 
for Pentir, Land's End ; Mac for Mab, a son ; Clan, 
an abbreviation of plant, children ; as Clan Mac 
Leod, Plant Mab Llwyd, &c. At the revival of 
Highland literature, had the translators of the New- 
Testament, and other authors who have published 
books in that language, been versed in the Cambro- 
British, and had they consulted the Welsh Diction- 
aries, their works would have been better understood. 
They would also have exhibited fewer instances of 
variation from works on the same subjects, which 
have appeared in the principality of Wales. For 
want of attention to this circumstance, the Erse trans- 
lations of the Sacred Scriptures, though well under- 
stood in some districts of the Highlands, is almost 
unintelligible in others. An enlightened and devout 
clergyman in one of the Western Isles used to de- 
clare, that he found that the reading of the Erse 
Testament to his congregation, was of little service to 
them, and that, by taking the Greek Testament in 
his hand, he could deliver an extemporary translation 
that was better comprehended, and that had a much 
better effect on them. Of what service to the 
other portions of England would be a translation of 
the Old and New Testament, were it to make its 
appearance in the vernacular dialect of Westmore- 
land ? 

As there were neither books nor manuscripts in 
the Erse till of late years, the first authors in that 
language put dow r n the words by rote from the 
pronunciation of those with whom they conversed. 



114 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

Let the experiment be tried from the colloquy of an 
illiterate peasant, in any living language, and it will 
appear a different dialect, calculated to baffle etymo- 
logical inquiry, and bid defiance to all criticism. 
A piece of music taken down from the mouth of a 
country singer, by an old adept in the science, will 
assume a very different appearance, and produce a 
very different effect from the same air in a correct 
scientific copy. The Erse still boasts of several 
pieces of composition that are very deservedly ad- 
mired. The language is extremely beautiful, and it 
is difficult to write what has been well composed in 
it, in such a manner that it shall not retain some of 
its original charms. Every thing in it would be 
more generally admired, and the language would be 
less censured by strangers, were compositions of this 
nature presented to the public eye with less attention 
to particular dialects, and with more liberal views of 
contributing to the improvement of the Celtic tongue 
in general, of removing its corruptions, and of clearing 
up its obscurities. The ruin of the Gallic tribes was 
their division among themselves ; and the same error 
and a similar fatality seem to attend the patrons of 
their respective dialects. Less narrow-minded jea- 
lousy, and more generous efforts towards general 
knowledge, might render the language a more fa- 
vourite object of inquiry. They might also mate- 
rially contribute to develope the antiquities, to eluci- 
date the languages, and to explain the history of 
Europe. 

The language of the Isle of Man does not differ 
very materially from the Welsh. The Norwegians, 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. ] jftj 

during their residence in the island, left some vestiges 
of their dialect; in other respects the Manks greatly 
resembles the Erse. In the course of a late tour 
through that territory, the names of places were dis- 
covered to be similar to those in Wales, as the town 
of Fyle corresponding with Pyle in Glamorganshire,* 
lw , , common na mes of most things appeared to 
be Welsh, with a very trifling variation. A shep- 
herd employed in raising a turf-fence was asked what 
be called the spade which he held in his hand ■ he 
answered pheil, pdl being the Welsh word, which by 
mutation becomes pMl, as ei phdl, her spade. A 
literary gentleman in the island, engaged in com- 
posing a dictionary of the language, was at a loss to 
discover the etymology of Cencote, their term for 
Whitsunday, and of Wilie Nolig, their phrase for 
Christmas: he had written to Smith, of Campbell 
lown, the translator of several pieces from the Erse 
and to various other critics in that language, and had 
obtained no satisfactory answer. It was suggested 
to h.m that Cencote might be only a corruption of 
Pencote the P being changed into C, as is often the 
case with many of the Celtic words : and Pencote, 
by syncope and the effect of a rapid and careless 
pronunciation, for Pentecost, the proper name for 
that festival ; and that Wilie Nolig might be a cor- 
ruption of Wiliau, or Gwiliau y Nadoligj the Welsh 

* Douglas Town is from Don or M, black, and GUs dark 

bltVcomT ?Ve V° the D ° UglaS fami '^ fr ° m *eir dak td 
black complexion, from whom the town had its name. 

t Nadohg , s derived from the word geni, to be born • from 

wh,ch 9 ene di9 ol, abont to be born, «J ge^igolig, belong 



1 16 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

name for the Christmas Holidays : in the Welsh 
language Gwiliau, by mutation Wiliau, implies vigils 
or holydays ; and Nadolig, relating to the Nativity, 
which by syncope might be easily abbreviated into 
Nolig, the term used in the vernacular language of 
the Isle of Man. He was struck with the force of 
these observations, acknowledged his sense of their 
propriety and pertinence, lamented his ignorance of 
the language of the Principality, and expressed a 
wish to be furnished with a dictionary and grammar 
of that copious dialect of the Celtic. He was per- 
suaded that these appendages would materially con- 
tribute to the illustration of the language of his na- 
tive island. At the conclusion of " Martin's Voyage 
into the Western Isles," a list is given of Erse words 
corresponding with the Welsh, and an explanation of 
the mutation of consonants generally adopted in the 
northern dialects of the Celtic, which has occasioned 
the languages of different districts to appear remoter 
from each other than they really are. 

The Cornish dialect is at present nearly extinct. 
Two manuscripts in this language are still preserved 
in the Bodleian library at Oxford, and Llwyd in his 
" Archaiologia" has given a Cornish dictionary. He 
has likewise inserted in the same work a moderately 



t0 what may be about to be born, are formed: Genedigolig is 
by syncope, converted euphonice gratid, into Gennadolig, and 
genadolig, by aphseresis into nadolig. These mutations are men- 
tioned, because, if properly attended to, they will prove a clue 
that will, through the labyrinth of modern etymology, lead to the 
derivation of many northern words that, through ignorance of the 
Celtic, are often falsely interpreted and erroneously written. 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 117 

copious dictionary of the Armoric dialect, or the lan- 
guage of Bretagne in France, which, if we except 
the obtrusion of the letter z in lieu of dd, and some 
other trifling variations, can hardly be said to dif- 
fer from the dialect of the Celtic prevalent in the 
principality of Wales. The inhabitants of this part 
of France frequently trade to South Wales for coal, 
&c, and are able without much difficulty to converse 
with the natives. They often humorously claim 
kindred with them, and consider them as the same 
people with themselves. In the course of the expe- 
dition to Belleisle in the year 1759, the Welsh soldiers 
in the English army were understood by the natives 
of Britany, and of the neighbouring islets, and on this 
account experienced several instances of friendship 
and hospitality. Gascoigne is denominated Gwds- 
gwynn by Welsh writers, which suggests a very 
plausible etymology ; and ancient British historians 
assert, that most of the army that attended Cassi- 
velaunus to France, consisting of sixty thousand men, 
settled in Gwdsgwynn. The characteristic dialect of 
the province has now, in a great measure, vanished ; 
or at least it has dwindled into a patois of vulgar 
French, but sufficient vestiges of it remain to prove 
that it was anciently of Celtic origin. Languedoc 
is a Welsh name, as are many names of families and 
places in that part of the country. The Cevennes 
mountains in that province evidently derive their ap- 
pellation from the Celtic word Cevn, a back or ridge 
of hills. Provence retained, till of late years, much 
of the Welsh or Gallic language, and many of the 
Celtic customs. The Troubadours or Provencal and 



118 HI STO R I C A L A N EC DOTES 

Spanish bards, like them, courted the sister arts of 
music and poetry. Among the hills which separate 
France from Spain, are several remains of Celtic 
tumuli, and Druidical altars, and in the dialect of the 
inhabitants may be discovered evident traces of the 
Celtic language. 

But before we pass the Pyrenees,* we may take a 
short view of France, and offer a few cursory remarks 
on the vestiges of a Gallic origin, which still dis- 
tinguish that nation. Many of the words used at 
present in France, were introduced into that country 
by the Franks. Many also were left there by the 
Romans, who resided during a long period in the 
Gallic provinces ; but upwards of one-third, perhaps 
one-half of the language was bequeathed to them by 
their ancestors the Gauls. The near affinity it bears 
to that of the principality of Wales, may be disco- 
vered in the following brief specimen of the dialect 
of both countries : 

FRENCH. WELSH. 

Argent, silver, Avian. 

Bast on, now Baton, a staff, Pastwn, ei Bastwn, his staff. 

Cheval, a horse, Ceffyl, ei Cheffyl, her horse. 

Chevre, a goat, Gafyr, or Gavr. 

Come, a horn, Corn. 

Corps, a body, Corph. 

Couronne, a crown, Cor on. 

* The Pyrenees derive their name from the Celtic words, pur, 
clear, and ne, sky or air. Dionysius the geographer describes the 
Celts as dwelling on the Pyrenees, near the source of the river Po, 
as he expresses it : 

ToTc h' zttl Uvp prjvaiov opog k ^wfiara KeXtwv, 
Ay\6hi Jlriyaojv xaWippou Hpiavolo, &C. V. 288, &C 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 



119 



FRENCH. 

Courir, to run, to wander, 
Ecrivain, a writer, 
Glaive, a knife or sword, 
Lait, milk, 
Livre, a book, 
Mois, a month, 
Moulin, a mill, 
Muet, dumb, 
Pay en, a heathen, 
Pelerin, a pilgrim, 
Pesee, weighed, 
Putain, a courtezan, 
Taureau, a bull, 



WELSH. 

Crwydro. 

Ysgriven, a writing. 

Glaiv. 

Llaeth, by mutation, Laeth. 

Llyvr, ei Lyfr, his book. 

Mis. 

Melin. 

Mud. 

Pagan. 

Pererin. 

Pwysan, weights. 

Put tain. 

Tarw. 



An additional number of words might have been 
selected, which appear to be nearly the same in both 
languages, but the advantage in point of harmony and 
mellowness of sound is universally admitted, by those 
who are esteemed good judges of the subject, to be 
decidedly in favour of the Welsh. This may be ob- 
served on comparing terms of a similar import, such as 



FRENCH. 

Merchander, to merchandize, 

Faire voile, to sail, 

Veiller, to watch, 

Benir, to bless, 

Un boucle d 'argent, a silver 
buckle, 

Allez ckercher Guillaume pour 
veiller cette nuit, send for 
William to watch this night. 



WELSH. 

Marsianda. 

Hwylio. 

Gwylio. 

Bendittio, Bendithio. 

Bud arian. 

Halan 61 Wili wylioheno. 



In the following example from the divine poems 
of the celebrated Vicar of Llandovery, written about 
the year 1600, almost every word is French. 



120 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

Sonied marsiand am varsianda, 

Sonied morwr am yr India, 

A sonied cybydd am ei gist, 

Ond sonied Cristion byth an Grist." 
Of their rich merchandize let merchants boast, 
Let sailors boast of either India's coast, 
Let misers boast the countless sums they hoard, 
Yet let not Christians boast, but of their Lord. 

It is impossible in any language to give the force 
and beauty of the original within the compass of four 
lines. The French however will admit of almost a 
literal translation, as, " Les soins cTun marchand sent 
de marchander" &c, but in point of softness and 
mellifluence of sound, it will not allow of a compa- 
rison with the Cambro-British. The French affect 
to despise every antiquated expression, and to con- 
demn it as Gaulois, or Gallic. It appears, however, 
that the best and most harmonious part of the lan- 
guage is Gallic, and that it has not improved much 
by the verbal importation from the Franks, nor by 
the abbreviation of words borrowed from the Latin ; 

* This example is selected because the late Rev. E. Evans, 
author of " Dissertatio de Bardis," " Specimen of Welsh 
Poetry," &c, who certainly must be allowed to have been a good 
judge of poetic compositions, used to repeat these lines with rap- 
ture, and then clench his fist, after his manner, and exclaim, 
" There is poetry, sir ; you will not show me four such artless and 
yet poetic lines together, in all Pindar, nor indeed in any of your 
bards, nor in any of your boasted Grecian authors." It is extra- 
ordinary that the Vicar of Llandovery, the Rev. Rees Prichard, 
M.A., should not be mentioned in the Cambrian Biography. No 
book has ever been so popular as the Vicar's poems : every pea- 
sant in Wales has them by heart. They were translated into En- 
glish about the year 1776, but the adoption of the quaint title 
prefixed to them in Oliver Cromwell's time spoiled the sale. 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 121 

and in fact that the stock of words left them for their 
portion by their Celtic ancestors, forms the most 
valuable part of their philological stores. Voltaire did 
as much injury to the language as to the morals of 
the country ; though who denies that he was a man of 
genius ? The absurd practice of writing every word 
as it is pronounced has obscured the etymology, and 
barbarized the sound of half the language. It has 
given the words borrowed from the Latin and other 
numerous languages a minced curtailed form, resem- 
bling the broken imperfect speech of French children 
in the last age. It is difficult for this reason to trace 
at present the derivation of many words — mouton, for 
instance, was anciently written moulton, a sheep, 
which is evidently a diminutive from the Celtic term 
moult, or mollt, a sheep or weather. Gwilym in one 
of his poems has 

" groen mollt i grino mys." 
Nor shame my fingers with a sheep-skin glove. 

Notwithstanding, however, these modern revolu- 
tions in orthography, manifest marks of the effects of 
a Celtic descent may still be observed in the patois of 
every province, especially towards the Pyrenees and 
the Cevennes Mountains. Many of these provinces 
retain the Gallic language, particularly on the 
Spanish side of the Pyrenees where the Celtiberians 
once resided. The common tongue of Gallicia and 
of Biscay is, in a great measure, Celtic ; and whatever 
difference of dialect may seemingly prevail in those 
districts is more occasioned by ignorance, and by a 
corrupt vicious pronunciation, than by the admixture 
of any foreign dialect. The Spanish language itself 



122 



HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 



is, to a considerable extent, Celtic ; a few words in it 
are derived from the Arabic, a great number from the 
Latin, and nearly all the remainder from the Celtic. 
The same may be observed of the Portuguese, except 
that there is less admixture of Moorish and Arabic 
words in the language of Portugal. The following 
short specimen may serve to demonstrate the simi- 
larity which the modern Spanish bears to the an- 
cient Celtic, and the manifest superiority of the latter, 
in point of melody of sound : 



SPANISH. 

Acea, hither, 
Cavallo, a horse, 
Escala, a ladder, 
Estrada, a street, 
Estudar, to study, 
Espiga, an ear of corn, 
Guaye, woe, 
Ladron, a thief, 
Llena, filling 1 , 
Llamar, to call aloud, 
Luvia, rain, 1 

Lluvio, to rain, ) 

Nocke, night, 
Pala, a spade, 
Pared, a wall, 
Peccador, a sinner, 
Pella, a ball, 
Pescador, a fisherman, 
Quescar, to make cheese, 
Rueda, a wheel, 
Trehan, a buffoon, 
Estender cas velas, to spread sails, 
Pella a la pared, the ball to the wall, 
La noche es cupa de peccadores, the 
night is the cloak of sinners, 



WELSH. 

Accw. 

Ceffylau, horses. 

Ysgol. 

Ystradau. 

A studio. 

Ysbigau, sheaves. 

Gwae. 

Ladron, thieves. 

Llanw, to fill. 

Llavaru, to speak aloud. 

Glawio, to rain. 

Nos. 

Palau, spades. 
Pared. 
Pechadur. 
Pelau, balls. 
Pysgodwyr, fishermen. 
Cawsu, to turn to cheese. 
Rhodau, wheels. 
Truan, a poor fellow. 
Ystynu'r hwyliau. 
Pelau at y pared. 
Y nos wisg gopa pechadu- 
riaid. 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 123 

From these examples it is evident that the Spanish 
bears a close resemblance to the ancient Celtic, and 
that it still retains the Celtic sound of the LI, which 
is not now preserved in any other European language, 
except in the Welsh and the Italian. * The simi- 
larity is very striking in several other respects be- 
tween the Spanish and the Welsh ; and no culti- 
vated modern tongue retains so many Celtic terms, 
or so much of the Celtic style and manner, if we ex- 
cept perhaps the Italian. There exists a closer affi- 
nity between the metrical compositions of Spain and 
of ancient Britain, than between those of the princi- 
pality and those of any other nation, we must except 
the productions of the Italian muse. The species of 
poetry called romance among the Spaniards is not 
dissimilar to the style adopted in the Pennillion and 
the most popular metres current among the inhabi- 
tants of Wales. Some of the Vicar of Llandovery's 
poems, though on sacred subjects, are precisely in the 
Spanish style, as the celebrated song on the nativity — 

Awn i Veth'lem, bawb dan gdnu, 
Neidio, dawnsio, a divyrru, fyc. 
Awn bob Cristion i gyflwyno, 
Aci roddl golwg arno, fyc. 

To Bethlem's precincts let us throng 
With sacred joy, and dance, and song, 
To see the Saviour of the earth, 
To whom this happy morn gave birth. 
Thither their hearts, let Christians bring, 
As offerings to their Heavenly King, &c. 

In traversing the coast from the Spanish territo- 
ries towards the confines of Italy, many places and 

* In the Welsh LI: in the Italian Gl. 



124 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

many objects present themselves, which recall to the 
mind exploits of former ages. They exhibit vestiges 
of the residence of the Celts, or the Celtiberi, in 
Spain, and in the south of France, and of their 
power, and their customs and language. The 
etymology of several places in these provinces has 
long puzzled geographers. The name of the people 
called Arveri has not been satisfactorily accounted 
for, but the Celtic offers a ready explication in Ar 
werni, the tribes inhabiting the swamps or marshy 
grounds. The appellation of the River Rhone has 
been supposed to be derived from a Greek word im- 
plying agitation. A Greek colony it is true once 
settled at Marseilles, but is it probable that they 
should give name to a river, the source of which was 
at so great a distance from them, " which pursued 
the tenor of its way" through so many nations, and 
which most probably had received its denomination 
long before it reached their vicinity ? And does not 
the derivation itself, of Rhone from poSaila), appear 
forced and unnatural ? Does it not seem more pro- 
bable from its rapidity in some places, and its mean- 
dering course and circling eddies in others, that it 
was denominated Rhoden or Rhodanus — the circling 
river, especially when it is recollected that a town 
called Rhodau, or the meanders, in Latin Rhoda, is 
mentioned by Pliny, * as having been built on its 
banks ? Very lofty mountains as those of Scotland, 
were called Alban by the Celts, from ban, a hill, and 
al, very high, or elevated. The Alps (from Al- 
ban or Alt pen) probably derive their name from this 

* See Pliny's Natural History, Book iii. chap. 4. 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 125 

source, as the Appenine* hills may from the Gallic 
word pen, a head, or the summit of a mountain. 
But with respect to the names of places in this part 
of Europe, derived from the Celtic, Pezron is very 
plausibly ingenious, and what may have escaped his 
laborious investigations may be discovered among 
the fruits of our own countryman Baxter's researches. 
Many of their derivations, however, may be only 
the productions of a warm imagination ; for what so 
uncertain as etymological conjectures ? The extent 
of the Celtic possessions in these districts, and the 
long residence of the Celts in them, give to these 
radical explanations more consistency and verisimili- 
tude. The descent of much of the language of these 
parts from the Celtic, though like the Rhone it may 
have been enriched by other streams in its course, 
appears to be a very probable and rational conjecture. 
That the observation has not often been made is, 
because the ancient British is not so much studied, 
or so well understood, as from its copiousness and 
its beauties it appears amply to deserve. A con- 
siderable portion of the languages of the southern 
parts of Europe, may be more immediately derived 
from the Latin, which, whether descended from the 
Celtic or not, is a matter of dispute. We have the 
testimony of the best Latin authors themselves, that 
a considerable share of their vocabulary is of Celtic 
or Gallic origin. Bardus is mentioned by Lucan as 
taken from the barddor bard of the Celts ; basgauda, 
a basket, is acknowledged by Martial to be borrowed 
from the British. 

* Y Penwyn, or white bead, or top. 



120 HISTORICAL ANECDOTKS 

" Barbara de pictis veni bascauda Britannis 
Sedjam mavult dicere Roma suam." 

Baskets were first in happier Britain found, 

But vain Rome claims what naked Britons own'd. 

Essedum, a chaise, from eisedd, now pronounced 

eistedd, to sit, is considered both by Caesar and 

Virgil as a Gallic or Belgic term : 

" Belgica feret esseda collo." 

And bear the Belgic chariot on his neck. 

Caballus, from cejfyl, a horse — carrus, from the 
Welsh carr, a car — covinus, a waggon, from cowain, 
to carry as in a waggon — cerevisia, from cwrw, ale — 
Druides, from Derwyddes, Druids, (mentioned by 
Caesar and Pliny, and several others) and rheda, a 
swift travelling chariot, from rhed or rhedeg, to run, 
are words universally acknowledged to be of Celtic 
origin. It is a circumstance well known to those 
who are in the least acquainted with the Latin 
classics, that the catalogue of Latin words derived 
from the Celtic might be considerably augmented. 
These words, and many more occasionally introduced 
by Roman authors, are still used in the language of 
the principality of Wales, precisely in the sense in 
which they were applied in the days of Julius Caesar, 
a proof that the language has continued at least 
eighteen centuries without any visible alteration ; 
and as there are no records of profane history that 
go back above eight or nine hundred years further, 
and as nothing occurs in them that tends to con- 
trovert the account which the Celts generally gave 
of their origin, it may be fairly presumed that their 
history is founded on truth, and that their language 
is at least of as great antiquity as any European 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 127 

language. Certainly that can be considered as no 
other than a copious source which could enrich the 
Latin language, and give birth to almost all the 
languages of Europe. The Cimbri # at an early pe- 
riod were a very powerful Celtic tribe, and in the 
time of Metullus and Marius they overran nearly all 
Italy. In a still remoter age the Gauls endangered 
Rome. At that period one of their principal leaders 
was Bran, or Brennus, a name still not uncommon in 
the principality of Wales, as Glan Bran, &c. It is 
frequently mentioned in the historical collections of 
the country. 

In the time of Tacitus, the Cimbri, the Longo- 
bardi, the Bori, the Borcini, &c. and the other 
Celtic and Gallic tribes occupied a considerable part 
of Germany. It is not improbable, therefore, that 
most of the languages of the north were derived from 
the same source, and had flowed for a long period in 
the same channel, till by diverging to the regions of 
the north, and traversing a different climate, at a 
remote distance from its rise, the tongue in process of 
time was vitiated, and the manners of the people who 
spoke it became varied and estranged. Bronkornius 
was so fully convinced that many words in the Dutch 
language were derived from a Celtic source, that he 
some years since published in Holland a quarto edi- 
tion of Dr. Davies's Welsh and Latin Dictionary, in- 
tending, had he lived, to in vestigate Gallic antiquities, 
and hoping to create a taste for Druidical researches. 
Dr. Johnson was so fully persuaded that a consider- 

* Eundem Germanise situm proximi Oceano Cimbri tenent, 
parva nunc civitas, sed gloria ingens, veterisque famse late ves- 
tigia manent, &c. Tacitus De Moribus Germanorum. 



128 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

able portion of the English language is derived from 
the Celtic, that prior to that great literary enterprize, 
the compilation of his English Dictionary, he re- 
solved to acquire a competent knowledge of the Welsh 
language. He was so far master of it, that during 
his tour through North Wales, when a person hesi- 
tated and blundered in attempting to translate a 
Welsh epitaph to him, the Doctor, observing his con- 
fusion, said in a tone of unwonted mildness — " Yes, 
sir, I perceive clearly what you would say," and 
himself gave a correct and elegant version of it. 

What has been affirmed of the English and the 
Dutch is applicable to the Saxon and the German ; 
much of their vocabulary is of Gallic origin, and 
many of their customs betray a Celtic connection. 
The Teutonic dialects may be remoter than most of 
the southern languages from the common Celtic 
source, while so long exposed to the cold regions of 
the north. They may have received some external 
impressions, which have given them a different ap- 
pearance, but the nature of the stream is the same, 
and its qualities are not dissimilar. Whoever, that 
is at all conversant with the ancient British language, 
carefully examines the Gothic Gospel, or any book 
written in the languages derived from the Gothic, 
will be surprised at the number of Celtic words that 
perpetually occur, * and will be convinced of the truth 

* As a proof that many words in the Gothic Gospel are of 
Celtic origin, let any person, conversant with both languages, 
consult Junius's Glossary at the end of the Gothic Gospels, and 
he will be convinced of the truth of this observation. 

The Russian language has several Celtic words; and many names 
of men and places bear a striking resemblance to the Welsh. 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 129 

of Tacitus's assertion, whatever some modern system- 
mongers may have dreamed to the contrary, that the 
Goths were of Gallic origin ; " Gothnios Gallic a 
lingua coarguit non esse Germanos." But the lively 
Gallic stream seems frozen in its course ; the words 
no longer terminate in vowels ; no vocalic terminations 
distinguish either the plural number of nouns, or the 
infinitive mood of verbs. Every word is abbreviated 
and divested of all ornament, and neither in their in- 
flections, nor in their usual grammatical variations, do 
they admit of any harmonious modulation. Nothing 
but what bare necessity requires is attended to. It 
is no more the language of men basking in the sun- 
shine of plenty, indulging in luxury, and amusing 
themselves with the harmony of numbers and the 
melody of sweet sounds. It is the dialect of men im- 
pelled by their enemies to wander over the dreary forests 
of the north, where, fatigued with the labours of the 
chase, and harassed by the vicissitudes of war, they 
find it difficult to provide themselves with the sim- 
plest articles of subsistence ; and where, being con- 
stantly occupied, they seldom speak, except as imperi- 
ous necessity demands, and then concisely, and in the 
roughest and most uncultivated manner. The body 
of the language in point of substance is still the same. 
Its rougher dress, and its total neglect of all ornament, 
certainly render its appearance different; still its pro- 
minent features betoken its Celtic origin, and its alli- 
ance to that which is found in request among the dif- 

A Russian prince, nearly related to the Emperor, was called 
Ivan ; and one of the admirals in favour with the Empress Ca* 
therine II. wasTaliezin, 

K 



130 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

ferent Gallic tribes. It was late before the Gothic, 
the Teutonic, and all the languages derived from them, 
were committed to writing. Had they been system- 
atically studied and correctly written at an earlier 
period, the dissimilarity between them and the Celtic 
would have been less perceptible, and the difficulties 
attending the investigation of their origin would have 
been less considerable. 

The Saxons, on their arrival in Britain in the sixth 
century, were totally ignorant of letters. They ac- 
quired in process of time much of the learning, as well 
as most of the possessions, of the Britons ; and the 
alphabet which they adopted was that anciently in 
use among the Welsh, and still preserved among the 
Irish ; most manuscripts of the Welsh, till the inven- 
tion of printing, being written in what has been very 
erroneously called the Saxon character. * 

In descending from the forests of the north towards 
the mountains of Thrace and Thessaly, many vestiges 
of the Celtic language are discernible, as the bas- 
tarnce, from bddsarnau ; oescus, from wysg, water; 
toui, from tovi or towl, the name of a Celtic or British 
river. Pella, a town on the extreme point of Mace- 
donia on the bay of Thessalonica, from pella, furthest. 
Rhsesus, mentioned by Homer as a Thracian prince 
who had marched to the aid of the Trojans, seems to 
have been a prince of the Celtic name of Rhys; 

* See Ed. Llwyd's Archaiologia Britannica on this subject. 
An ancient copy of Ovid's works in Latin, in the Bodleian Li- 
brary at Oxford, has an explanation of the difficult words in 
Welsh written in this character. An old Welsh manuscript, 
called the Red Book of Hergest, is also partly written in this 
character. 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 131 

Troy itself is derived from troi, to turn, or from tro, a 
turn. It is worthy of remark that the shepherds on 
the mountains of Wales still form, with their knives 
on the turf, a representation of the streets of Troy, 
full of windings and various turns. * The names of 
many places in Thessaly and Greece are of Celtic or 
Gallic origin. Some Grecian tribes were anciently 
called Gallo-Grceci. The Greek language seems 
either to be a derivative from the Celtic, or to have 
sprung originally from the same stock. A list of 
Greek words, bearing a near affinity to the Welsh, 
may be seen at the end of the " Vindication of the 
Celts ;" the list, however, might have been considera- 
bly enlarged. There is an extraordinary circumstance 
relative to the derivation of several Greek words, for 
which, if the language be not a dialect of the Celtic, 
it will be difficult to account. Most of the Greek 
primitives correspond with words of a similar sound, 
and of the same import in the Celtic language. The 
Greek language admits of no further derivation, while 
the radix may always be found in the Celtic ; for 
instance, v8o>p, water; Celtic, y dw?% the water. In the 
Celtic it is derived from dwfyr, by syncope dwr ; in 
Owen's Dictionary, f dwfr is said to be derived from 
dwf, to glide ; whence is formed dwfyr, the glider, or 
the gliding element : but in Greek, vSwp has no cer- 
tain radix. BpayjiaQ, an arm, seems to be derived from 
the Celtic, braich, an arm, which Mr. Owen derives 
from ba?% a branch ; baruwch, a high branch ; plur. 

* See Cambrian Popular Antiquities, 8vo. p. 212. 
t The valuable Dictionary of the late accomplished and much 
respected Dr. W. O. Pugh. — Editor. 



132 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

breichiau, branches, or arms; yapyaXl^u), to tickle, cor- 
rupted from the Celtic, igogleisio, to tickle, which is 
derived from the root, dais, a bruise; cleislo, to handle 
roughly, to bruise, to leave a mark ; ogleisio, in con- 
struction gogleisio, to handle gently, to tickle. EyOtQ, 
heri, yesterday, the day before yesterday, the time, 
from the Celtic, echdoe, the day before yesterday, 
which is derived from ech or uwch, prior to, and doe, 
yesterday ; and doe is formed from do, it is past, it is 
done. Uvp, fire, from the Celtic, pur, an epithet of 
fire ; as, pur dan, or tan pur, an intense fire, from puro, 
to purify. It would be too tedious to enumerate all 
the Greek words that appear to correspond in their 
import, as well as in their sound, with those in the 
Celtic language. The Gallic student, in perusing the 
Greek primitives, finds his memory assisted by recol- 
lecting the meaning of words that bear the greatest 
resemblance to them in his own language, and is 
surprised to discover that they can be traced no fur- 
ther in the Greek, and that the root is almost always 
to be found in the Celtic. 

Etymologies may sometimes be uncertain, and may 
at other times be pursued beyond the verge of proba- 
bility ; but the analogy between the Greek primitives, 
and their radices in the Celtic, appears so natural, and 
is so well connected, that it recalls to mind the remarks 
of ancient historians relative to the Gallo-Grceci in 
Europe, and the Gallati in Asia Minor. Nor are the 
remarks new that have been made in the preceding 
pages relative to the beauties of the Welsh language ; 
its softness having been demonstrated to be not inferior 
to that of the Italian, and its comprehensive energy to 
be no less vigorous than that of the Greek. The au- 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 133 

thor of the " Letters from Snowdon" observes of the 
ancient British language, that " notwithstanding the 
multiplicity of gutturals and consonants with which it 
abounds, it has the softness and harmony of the Italian, 
with the majesty and expression of the Greek." The 
prejudice that has unaccountably prevailed, relative 
to the number of gutturals and the multiplicity of 
consonants, it is presumed, has been removed by the 
observations in the foregoing pages. The justness 
of the other remarks of the author of the " Letters," 
with regard to the energy and harmony of the lan- 
guage, is evident from the concurrent testimony of 
all scholars conversant with other languages, and not 
ignorant of that of the principality of Wales. 

From this cursory view of the history, the topo- 
graphy, and the various dialects of Europe, it would 
appear probable that the Celts, the Gauls, the Longo- 
bardi, the Cimbri, and the other Celtic tribes, under 
different denominations, at some remote period over- 
ran almost all Europe. The Greeks call the Cimbri, 
Ki/m/Litpioi, and the Welsh still distinguish themselves 
by the name of Cymry. In construction the initials 
of words are known to be mutable, as, i Gymry, a word 
which Pezron and some other etymologists derive 
from Gomer the son of Japhet. They contend that 
he was the father of Holl Gymry, or all the Cimbri ; 
and that the Cimbri were divided, in process of 
time, into different sects and tribes, using the same 
language, but, for want of intercourse, vary ing consi- 
derably in its dialects. 

Whatever truth there may be in this hypothesis, it 
is remarkable that the radix of most words in every 



f34 



HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 



European language may be found in the Welsh ; 
while, though a considerable similarity subsists be- 
tween it and the Hebrew, the roots of no Hebraic 
words are to be found in it ; but the roots of most of 
the ancient British, or real Welsh words, may be re- 
gularly traced in the Hebrew. This may be instanced 
in the few following examples : 

WELSH. HEBREW. 

Ysu, to burn, } 

Tdn ysol, consuming fire, i mi *' re * 

Mam, a mother, on, a mother. 

Pori, i bori, to graze, nyn, to graze. 

Iwbwb, a cry of distress, m*, to cry aloud. 

Bara, bread, rnn, pure wheat. 

Dodi, to place, to thrust, it, to thrust forward. 

Chwalu, to pierce after, to bruise, *?n, to pierce. 

Cesail, the armpit, boz, the flank. 

Neges, a business, a task, wjj, a task-master. 

Sidan, silk, no, loose dresses. 

Obru, below, up, beyond. 

Palu, to separate the earth, to dig, ) n^D, to separate. 

Pared, a partition, j tid, to divide. 

YspiOj to overlook a prospect, nsv, to overlook, to view. 

Saer, a carpenter, ny», to form, to fashion. 

To augment this catalogue would be an easy task. 
Scarcely a Hebrew root can be discovered that has not 
its corresponding derivative in the ancient British 
language. A list of these words would be too 
uninteresting ; many of them may be found in Row- 
lands'^ " Mona Antiqua," in Dr. Davies's " Welsh and 
Latin Dictionary," in Richard's " Welsh and English 
Dictionary," published at Bristol about the year 1 750, 
and in several other philological works ; in which 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 135 

the affinity the Welsh bears to the Hebrew lan- 
guage is strenuously maintained ; but not only do 
the words themselves indicate that similarity between 
the two ; their variations and inflections afford a 
much stronger proof of affinity. In the Celtic, as 
well as in the Hebrew, the cases and gender of 
nouns are distinguished by affixes and prefixes, as 
33, a head; od, my head; Celtic, pen, a head ; pen i, 
or mhen i, my head ; pta, a sack ; *p», my sack ; rp^, 
his sack ; Celtic, sack, a sack ; sachi, or vy sack i, 
my sack ; ei sack o, his sack, &c. The Welsh, like 
the Hebrew, often distinguishes the genders by a 
change of the prefixes, as Hebrew, tan, a portion, 
Welsh, toccyn ; ei thoccyn, her proportion ; ei doccyn, 
his proportion, &c. The plural number of nouns 
likewise is often formed in a similar manner in the 
Celtic, by adding in (a contraction of at) to the sin- 
gular, as, deri, oaks ; cewri, giants, &c. In the for- 
mation of the different tenses and conjugations of 
verbs, the same similarity is still observable. The 
Welsh, in conformity with its prototype, the Hebrew, 
has no present tense. So rapid is the progress of 
time, that the moment which was represented as 
future, may often be regarded as past, while we are 
yet speaking of it. It is remarkable that at the 
commencement of the Apostles' Creed, in the Celtic 
or Welsh language, the future tense is used instead 
of the present, " Credaf yn Nuw, Dad, fyc." I will 
believe in God the Father. When absolute neces- 
sity requires that the present tense should be used, 
it is not unusual to have recourse to a circumlocution, 
and to introduce the auxiliary verb, yr wyf, I am ; yr 



136 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

wyfjiyn credit, yr wyt ti yn credit, I am in believing-, 
thou art in believing, or in the act of believing. 
The paragogic syllable wn, as in Hebrew and the 
oriental languages, is frequently added to words in 
Welsh, to convey an idea of intenseness or energy, 
as caru, to love; carwn, I would love ardently. To 
form passive verbs the letter n is likewise prefixed to 
the active, as euro, to beat ; fenghurwyd, I was beaten. 
The conjugation hithpahel or etpol, as it is de- 
nominated by some grammarians, though represented 
by many critics as peculiar to the Hebrew, is like- 
wise used in the ancient British, and is formed in a 
similar manner by prefixing a syllable to the theme 
of the verb, as, golchi, to wash ; ymolchi, to wash 
one's self, to bathe ; blino, to vex ; ymflino, to vex 
one's self; the prefixed syllable communicating to 
the verb a reflective force, not dissimilar to the 
middle voice of the Greeks. In the formation of 
sentences, and in the government of words, in the 
agreement of the adjective with the substantive, 
in the precedence of the latter, in the usual excep- 
tions to this rule, and in verbs plural being governed 
by nominatives singular, the Welsh so exactly cor- 
responds with the Hebrew, that the same syntax 
might serve for both. From these circumstances, 
and from the general affinity observed to subsist 
between the two languages, the sacred Scriptures 
appear with greater felicity and with more unaffected 
beauty in the Welsh than in any modern translation. 
The similarity to the original is so remarkable, that 
the Hebrew idioms are without violence retained 
in the ancient British version. In the passage in 
Gen. ii.17, rendered in English "thou shalt surely die," 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 137 

the Welsh preserves the oriental idiom, " dying, thou 
shaltdie." In all other iustances, the eastern phrase- 
ology appears with all its native ease and elegance 
in the Celtic dress, as in Gen. vii. 13. The Hebrew 
phrase, " within the body of that day," is in Welsh 
literally rendered, " o fewn corph y dydd hwnw ;" 
the English idiom not admitting of this beauty, 
the words have been translated, " in the self same 
day." In 1 Kings xiv. 5. where the wife of King Jero- 
boam is represented as disguising herself, the Welsh 
having recourse, like the Hebrew, to a reciprocal or 
reflective verb, not dissimilar in sound to the original 
uses only one word, " hiaymddieithra ;" to express 
this, the English version is under the necessity of 
expending seven or eight words, " and she shall 
feign herself to be another woman." To enumerate 
all the beauties of the ancient British version, would 
be an almost impracticable task, and the appearance 
of " Walter's Essay on the Welsh language," in 
which many of them are very happily displayed, has 
rendered it in a great measure unnecessary. From 
the affinity of the languages, the closeness of the 
translation, and the number of manuscript copies 
consulted in the course of the work, the ancient 
British or Welsh version may well be esteemed by 
far the most valuable that has appeared in any 
European language. It might be advantageously 
consulted by the biblical critic, even when access 
may be had to the Arabic, to the Syriac, and to 
the other oriental versions. As the idioms of the 
original are all preserved, the translation, though 
literal, appears easy and unconstrained. It often 
displays great felicity, and exhibits many apparent 



138 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

vestiges, many marks of considerable labour and 
intense application. It seems faithful and even ele- 
gant, but differs not unfrequently, on less moment- 
ous occasions, from most modern versions. It throws 
a light on many obscure passages, which the faint 
lustre of other translations has left as abstruse as ever. 
It is a western luminary — a splendid evening star, 
which, though late in its appearance, illumines the 
hemisphere that has been deserted by more glaring 
lights — it still shines with radiance, and may be 
approached without danger, while its friendly aid 
might be employed without the apprehension of its 
leading the enquirer after truth astray. It derives 
its splendour from the original, and reflects back that 
splendour with peculiar grace. It must consequently 
be a better medium through which to view obscure 
passages, than dead languages now rarely spoken, 
and but imperfectly understood. 

In " Ames' History of Printing," owing to igno- 
rance of the language, a remark is injudiciously 
made, which, if true, might tend much to the dis- 
credit of the Welsh translation of the sacred Scrip- 
tures. In the first folio edition of the Welsh Bible, 
published in Queen Elizabeth's reign, 1588, the 
expression, Rev. v. 8, " having every one of them 
harps and golden vials full of odours," is rendered 
" a chan bob un o honynt yr oedd telynau a chrythau 
aur, yn llawn o arogl darth ;" as " crwth" in the 
plural "crythau" often in Welsh implies a crowd or 
ancient violin. It is satirically insinuated by Ames, 
in a note, that the translators of the Welsh Bible were 
incapable of rendering it immediately from the origi- 
nal, but that the translation was effected through 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 139 

the medium of the English version, and that the 
word " vial" being mistaken for " viols," the Cambro 
British critics rendered it at once " cry than" or 
violins. Dr. Llewelyn, in his elaborate " Essay on the 
different Editions of the Welsh Bible," very feebly 
endeavours to repel the force of this sally, by repre- 
senting " crythau" as a typographical error, and 
discovers much skill in attempting to show how 
naturally the compositor might have been led into 
such a mistake. Had Llewelyn been a profounder 
critic in his own language, he might with less 
ingenuity have discovered a more satisfactory apo- 
logy for the translators of the Welsh Bible. In 
the first volume of " Warton's History of English 
Poetry," the note inserted in " Ames' History of 
Printing" is copied verbatim. It appeared too 
curious an anecdote to be omitted by the facetious 
laureate, but, willing to represent himself as a man of 
extensive erudition, he wished to have the credit of 
being deeply versed in the Celtic language ; and, 
therefore he took care not to mention the source from 
which he drew his observation, but passed the in- 
formation on his readers as his own. His ignorance 
of the language however marred the whole plot. 
For Ames, in his note, having erroneously written the 
word " crythan" instead of " crythau," Tom Warton, 
though he did not quote his author, in copying the 
note, copied likewise the literal error. The laugh 
he has attempted to excite will, therefore, be found 
to be raised only against himself. Had the witty 
attempt proved ever so successful, its effects could 
not long have prevailed ; for when the laugh had 
subsided, and the voice of truth was permitted to be 



140 HISTORICAL ANECDOTES 

heard, no vestige, either of inaccuracy or of ignorance 
of the original, could be justly imputed to the trans- 
lators. It is not unknown to any Welsh scholar, that 
" crwth" in its primary acceptation, implies any thing 
concave on one side and convex on the other ; and as 
it is not decided what were the precise forms of the 
"vials," which St. John describes, " crythau" was 
considered as the most unexceptionable translation, 
because it implied any vessels of a concave form. 
The feminine of " crwth" is used in various accepta- 
tions, as " croth y goes" the calf of the leg, from its 
concavity ; " croth" the womb, &c. ; " crwth" the 
masculine derivative, is still more extensively con- 
strued, as " crwth" a musical instrument ; " cefn 
crwth" a ridge of hills ; " crwth pysgotta, a small 
fishing vessel. In " Henry Salisbury's Welsh and 
English Dictionary," edited in Henry 8th's time, a 
saltbox is rendered, " crwth halen ;" the translators 
of the Welsh Bible most probably consulted Salis- 
bury's Dictionary, and "crythau" appeared to them 
the most correct version which they could give of 
the original. 

To those who are profoundly skilled in the Celtic 
language, the translation will not appear incorrect ; 
for the radical word, " crwth " will undoubtedly 
convey the idea intended in the original expres- 
sion, (piaXai. One of the translators of the Welsh 
Bible was the celebrated Dr. Richard Davies, Bishop 
of St. David's, who was so eminently versed in 
the ancient British language, that in his youth he 
contended for the poetical prize with the Welsh 
bards ; and some stanzas on the prize subject, " The 
Nightingale," produced by him at an Eisteddfod or 



OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 141 

Bardic Synod, were thought to equal any of the 
compositions of the most esteemed writers. He was 
so conversant with Greek, and so much distinguished 
by his knowledge of the oriental languages, that 
Queen Elizabeth engaged him to assist in the 
English version of the Bible. 

Another of the authors of the Welsh version 
was Dr. William Morgan, bishop successively of 
LlandafT and of St. Asaph, a man, for his extensive 
erudition and critical skill in the oriental languages, 
caressed by all the literati of the time. When 
vicar of Llanrhaidyr Mochnant, his talents attracted 
the attention of Dr. Goodman, then prebendary of 
Westminster, who invited him to pass a few months 
with him at his house in London. During his 
visit Dr. Morgan took an opportunity of shewing 
his friend and patron a translation of the Pen- 
tateuch, which he had attempted in the country. 
It was critically examined by competent judges, 
and, when satisfied of its merits, Dr. Goodman had 
it presented by some of his literary friends to the 
Bishop of London. The circumstance was at length 
mentioned to Queen Elizabeth, who rewarded his 
merit — for in those days the meritorious were seldom 
overlooked — with a bishopric. The patronage of the 
Queen, Dr. Morgan's labours, and the assistance 
of his learned friends, effected in process of time 
that wonder of Celtic literature, the elegant Welsh 
version of the sacred Scriptures. Against men so 
highly distinguished in the ranks of literature, the 
shafts of ridicule are aimed in vain ; they will 
only fall on the heads of the rash assailants. Dr. 
John Davies, the author of the Welsh and Latin 



142 historical anecdotes, etc 

Dictionary, is said to have assisted in the correction 
of this edition of the Welsh Bible. The word 
" crythau" could not therefore have crept through 
error into the translation, but must have been se- 
lected as the most correct representation of the ori- 
ginal, which is evident from the circumstance of its 
having been rendered " phialau" in the first transla- 
tion of the New Testament, by the learned and pa- 
triotic brothers, William and Henry Salisbury. But 
Dr. Morgan and his coadjutors apparently thought 
this rather an adoption of the original term than a 
translation.* Bishop Parry, considering the word 
" crythau" to be as liable to misconstruction, and as 
not familiarly known to the vulgar in its primary 
signification, how well soever the literati, and the 
readers of the works of the bards, might be ac- 
quainted with its radical import, determined to alter 
the translation in the edition of the Welsh Bible 
published in the reign of King James L, and accord- 
ingly he restored the word "phialau," as more nearly 
allied to the Greek <j>ia\ai, and more generally un- 
derstood by the inhabitants of the principality. The 
error, therefore, was not in the translators of the 
Welsh Bible, but in the misconception of some 
absurd critic, who communicated the observation to 
Ames, to be inserted in his " History of Printing." 
From that work it was copied without inquiry, and 
thus it was very undeservedly honoured with a place 
in the first volume of " Warton's History of English 
Poetry." 

* See Dr. Llewelyn's Dissertation and Tracts, &c. 



143 



AN INQUIRY 

INTO THE SITUATION OF THE GOLD MINES OF THE 
ANCIENT BRITONS. 

Frequent mention is made in the works of the most 
ancient and most celebrated of the British bards, of 
the torques, or golden wreath, worn in the day of 
battle round the neck of their chieftains, as an ensign 
of authority, a badge of honour, and a mark of noble 
descent. Aneurin, in his epic poem, written in the 
sixth century of the Christian era, on the unfortunate 
battle of Cattraeth, describes the march of three 
hundred and sixty-three British leaders to the field, 
all ornamented with the golden torques : 

Gwyr aeth Gattraeth buant crevawd, 
Gwin a meddaur fu eu gwirawd, 
Blwyddyn yn erbyn wrdyn ddynwd 

Try wyr a thriugait a thrichant eurdorchawd. 

Gododin. 

Which has been thus translated by Mr. Gray : — 

To Cattraeth's vale, in glitt ring row, 

Twice two hundred warriors go ; 
Ev 'ry warrior's manly neck 
Chains of regal honours deck, 

Wreath 'd in many a golden link, 

From the golden cup they drink, &c. 

Gray's Poems 



144 THE GOLD MINES OF 

Lomarchus Senex, or Llywarch Hen, prince of the 
Cambrian Britons, in his elegies, written about the 
year 560, on the loss of his sons, and of his regal 
dignity, asserts, that he had four-and-twenty sons, 
ornamented with the golden chain. 

Pedwar mab arugaint cim bu, 
Eurdorchawg tywysawg Liu,, 
Oedd Gwen goraud naddu. 

Four-and-twenty sons I have had 

Wearing the golden chain, leaders of armies; 

Gwen was the best of them. 

Llywarch Hens Elegies, p. 134. 

Golden cups, and horns tipped with gold, were 
often used at the warriors' feasts, to circulate the 
juice of the grape, and the cheerful mead. 

Gwin o rudd-aur fu eu gwirawd, &c. &c. 

From the golden cup they drink 
Nectar that the bees produce, 
And the grape's ecstatic juice. 

Gray's Poems. 

Y corn ath roddes di Urien, 
A'r arwest aur am ei en, 
Chwyth ynddo os daw angen. 

The horn given to thee by Urien, 
With the wreath of gold round its rim, 
Blow in it, if thou art in danger. 

Llywarch Hen's Elegies, p. 128. 

Dywallaw di'r corn argynfelyn. 

Pour out the horn with the glittering yellow top. 

Owen Cyfeiliog, Prince of Powys. 

The warriors' garments were frequently trimmed 
with gold. 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 145 

Gosgordd fynyddawg eurawg ynrhaid. Gododin. 

The men of Mynyddawg, whose garments in the conflict 
all glittered with gold. 

Hybarch yw mdb y marchog, 

Yn aur yn arian golerog. Torchog. 

The knight's brave offspring gold and silver deck, 
The golden torques ornaments his neck ; 
Honour and Fame attend on all his days ; 
On all his words, on all his actions, praise. 

Golden spurs were very usually worn by the an- 
cient British commanders. 

Tra vum i yn oed y gwds draw 

A wisg o aur ei ottoyw. 
Ryddai re y rhuthrwn y wayw. 

Whilst I was at the age of yonder youth, 

That wears the golden spurs, 
It was with velocity I pushed the spear. 

Owens Llywarch H^n, p. 130. 

Shields and armour ornamented with gold, are 
frequently mentioned by the British bards : 

Llewychedig aur ar fy nghylchwys. 

Gwalchmai. 

Bright glitters the gold on my round shield. 

Even shields fabricated of solid gold were not 
uncommon : 

Eilwaith gwelais gwedy gweithien, 
Aur ysgwyd ar ysgwydd Urien, 
Bu ail yno Elgno hen. 

A second time I saw, after that conflict, 
A golden shield on the shoulder of Urien, 
There again befel the fate of old Elgno. 

Owens Llywarch Hen, p. 36. 



146 THE GOLD MINES OF 

It was a rule invariably observed, by the superior 
orders of the British bards, never to admit any thing 
but truth into their compositions, and to leave fiction 
to embellish the feeble productions of the minor 
poets. The testimony, therefore, of these celebrated 
authors might be considered as sufficient to prove 
the opulence of the ancient Britons, if the possession 
of the precious metals may be considered as consti- 
tuting wealth ; and their testimony is corroborated 
by the suffrages of the British historians, and by the 
evidence of the most distinguished Roman writers. 
The Roman generals imposed an oppressive annual 
tribute on the Britons, which was for some time re- 
gularly paid by King Cynobelinus and his successors, 
in gold coin of no inconsiderable value. Prefixed 
to Bishop Gibson's edition of Cambden's Britannia 
is a table of ancient coins, found at various periods 
in different parts of the island. Among others, a 
specimen is given of Cynobelinus' pieces of gold, 
with his head in bass-relief on one side, and the in- 
scription Cynbelyn, or Cynobelinus, in very legible 
characters ; and on the reverse, the word Tascio, 
or taxing, in allusion to the occasion on which the 
coin had been struck. 

Caesar, indeed, from uncertain authority, states 
that the inhabitants of the British isles made use 
only of brass money, and iron rings ; but it may be 
conjectured how imperfect the information was which 
he received respecting the island, when he was in- 
duced to believe that the maritime counties produced 
only iron, while some of the inland provinces afforded 
tin. " Fert Britannia aurum, et argentum, et alia 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 147 

metatta"* Britain produces gold, silver, and other 
metals, are the words of Tacitus, in whose days the 
country was better known, and the customs and 
manners of the inhabitants were more perfectly un- 
derstood. The Roman historian is countenanced in 
his observation, as well by the most distinguished 
literary characters of his own nation, as b)^ the most 
celebrated British illustrators of the history and anti- 
quities of their country. The light derived from 
these constellations of British and Roman literature 
may serve to display the splendour of the dress, and 
the glitter of the golden ornaments, worn by the 
original inhabitants of the island ; but whether it 
may prove sufficient to lead to the discovery of the 
sources from which their riches were obtained, is a 
point that requires closer inquiry and profounder in- 
vestigation. In proportion as the object of inquiry is 
valuable, will the investigation be deemed interesting, 
and the information that has been collected useful and 
important. From the authorities already cited, it 
seems to be a fact incontrovertibly established, how- 
ever extraordinary and improbable it may appear to 
some persons, that gold was found in great profusion 
among the ancient inhabitants of Britain ; and had 
we not the testimony of Tacitus and others to prove 
that the country could at that period boast of its 
gold and silver mines, the appearance of those metals, 
in no unfrequent use among the inhabitants, would 
of itself amount to a presumptive proof, that they 
were derived from internal sources. For it is not 

* Life of Agricola, chap. 12. 



148 THE GOLD MINES OF 

probable, from the state of society in that age, that 
commerce had made any considerable progress among 
them, or that they had any valuable commodities 
to give in exchange for the precious metals, or 
any regular method of obtaining them from foreign 
countries. 

It naturally becomes, therefore, an interesting ques- 
tion, in what part of the island the mines of the 
ancient Britons were situated ? or where lay the 
sources from which they derived their golden stores ? 
Cattraeth, the ensanguined ground memorable for 
the obstinate conflict in which the Britons were en- 
gaged with the invading hosts of the Saxons, is 
celebrated in the Gododin, an epic poem in the 
British language, supposed to have been written 
about the sixth century. The scene of these tragical 
events is thought to have been a part of Scotland, 
at no remote distance from the English borders. 
From this circumstance, and the appearance of nearly 
" twice two hundred warriors" in that battle orna- 
mented with the golden wreath, it has been consi- 
dered as no unjustifiable conclusion, that their gold 
mines must have been situated in some of the pro- 
vinces to the northward of the Tweed ; and Crawford- 
moor has been regarded by many as the opulent spot 
which supplied their golden treasures, and added to 
the splendour of the Britons. It is a fact universally 
acknowledged, that gold, in no inconsiderable quan- 
tities, has been discovered there at different periods 
since the accession of the Stewart line to the throne 
of Scotland. It appears from the records of that 
kingdom, that the beautiful gold coins struck by 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 149 

King James V., and distinguished by the name of 
Bonnet Pieces, were fabricated of materials found in 
the mines of the country ; and James IV. and his 
son formed a contract with a company of Germans 
for working the gold mines of Crawford-moor. Cor- 
nelius, the principal miner, is celebrated as a man of 
eminent abilities and superior attainments. They 
proceeded for some time with considerable success ; 
but these industrious foreigners were expelled from 
the country, by the civil commotions and political 
tempests that desolated the kingdom during the 
reign of Queen Mary and the minority of King James. 
They, however, while permitted to proceed unmo- 
lested, collected grains of native gold in such pro- 
fusion, that at the marriage of King James V. with 
the daughter of the King of France, by way of des- 
sert a number of covered dishes were placed before 
the guests, filled with gold coins, formed of metal 
extracted from the mines of Scotland.* Small pieces 
of the metal, washed down by the floods, are fre- 
quently found at present in the rivulets that intersect 
the moor. The late Lady Selkirk (L817) used to wear, 
as an appendage to her watch-chain, a piece of na- 
tive gold of considerable magnitude, found by a 
shepherd in the fosses of Crawford-moor. 

But these sources have been regarded as too 
modern a discovery, and as too unproductive in their 
nature, to furnish the ancient Britons with the trea- 
sures which they are asserted to have possessed. 



* History of Scotland, Guthrie's Geographical Grammar, 
p. 132. 



150 



THE HOLD .MINKS OF 



The views of the inquirers after the gold mines of 
the original inhabitants of the island have therefore 
been directed towards Warlock Head, a place within 
two miles of Lead Hills, on the estate of the Duke of 
Queensbury. Medals formed of the gold discovered 
in these mines, were struck at Edinburgh at the co- 
ronation of Charles I. They are at present (1817) 
worked by a company of Germans, but with what 
success cannot be exactly ascertained. Mawe, the 
author of the " Mineralogy," visited Warlock Head 
a few years since. He found only one man at work, 
who was engaged in washing in a neighbouring 
rivulet quantities of reddish earthy matter, of thirty 
or forty pounds weight, dug from the mine. After 
several rinsings, a few grains of gold were observed 
to precipitate themselves to the bottom.* Pieces of 
virgin gold, exceeding an ounce weight, have been 
occasionally discovered there by this process. But 
the success is regarded as too inconsiderable, and 
too precarious to encourage the company to employ 
more than one person at a time, in these operations. f 



* Mawe's Mineralogy, p. 13 8. 

t It is worthy of remark, that the names of most places in 
this neighbourhood are purely British, notwithstanding the revo- 
lution of so many centuries, as Pen pont, Bridge End ; Eccles 
fechan, Eglwysfechan, Little Church. Cilscadan Penderi ; Nith, 
Aarver, resembling in name Neath or Nedd, in Glamorganshire, 
Drumlanrug, the seat of the Duke of Queensbury. &c. Many 
persons now living remember the old pure British language 
spoken in the hills of Galloway, in the earliest part of the last 
century. Could they adopt a uniform pronunciation, and similar 
rules of orthography, the Irish, the Erse, and the Welsh, would 
be mutually intelligible to the inhabitants of Wales, Ireland, and 
Scotland. 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 151 

It is therefore questioned whether a sufficient supply 
of gold could ever have been derived from these 
mines, supposing them to have been discovered at 
so early a period, to answer the purposes to which it 
appears, on the most unquestionable authority, that 
the richer metals were so commonly and so profusely 
applied by the ancient Britons. 

The inquiries of those who have investigated the 
subject have recently been directed to a more southern 
spot. Several places in Carmarthenshire, and its 
vicinity, appear from their names to have been 
anciently productive of gold ; such as y gelli aur, or 
the golden grove ; melin yr aur, or the golden mill ; 
Troed yr aur, or the foot of the gold hills; and seve- 
ral others. Cynwyl Gaio in that county is repre- 
sented as having been a Roman station for many 
years ; and the Roman troops, while posted there, 
were employed, it has been imagined, in extracting 
gold from the mines discovered in the adjacent hills. 
The name * implies that it was the post occupied by 
the advanced guard of Caius ; and it is probable that 
the advanced guard of the Britons was stationed at 
Cynwyl Elfed, the advanced post of Elfed, a place 
situated a few miles to the southward of Caio. The 
Gauls, the Helvetians, and the Britons, were origi- 
nally the same people. The identity of names being 
generally considered as a strong indication of simi- 
larity of language, little doubt can be entertained 
that Elfed and Helvetia are words that derive their 
origin from the same language and the same radix. 

* From cyn, first, and gwyl, givylis, to watch, or be vigilant. 



152 THE GOLD MINES OK 

That Cynwyl and Elfed was considered by the 
Britons as an important station, may be demonstrated 
from the fragments still extant of the works of 
Llywarch Hen. 

Gwisgwys coed cain dudded hav, 
Dybrysid gwyth wrth dynged, 
Cyvarwyddom ni cam Elfed. 

The trees have put on the gay covering of summer, 
Let the wrath of slaughter hasten quickly, led by Fate, 
Let us be guided onward to the plains of Elfed. 

From the importance of the British military station, 
some conjecture may be formed of the attention with 
which the Romans regarded their rival warlike post 
opposed to it ; of the care with which they provided 
for its defence, and contributed to its support ; and of 
the solicitude with which they endeavoured to main- 
tain the honour of the garrison intended to restrain the 
incursions of a brave and enterprising enemy. Seve- 
ral bricks have been dug up in the vicinity of Caio 
with the initials of Roman names inscribed on them. 
And tradition asserts that the number of Roman brick 
edifices in the neighbourhood were formerly so consi- 
derable, as to bear the denomination of " Y Drif 
Goch yn Neheubarth" or the Red Town in South 
Wales. At Maes Llanwrthwl in this parish, the 
seat of John Bowen, Esq. about two miles from the 
village of Caio, a stone has been discovered with a 
Roman inscription, implying that a Roman general 
fell there in an engagement with the Britons. The 
inscription was copied by Mr. Saunders, of Jesus' 
College Oxford, and communicated to Bishop Gib- 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 153 

son, who inserted it in his edition of Cambden's 
Britannia. 

Roman tumuli have been observed in the environs, 
exceeding in number those that have been discovered 
in any other part of the kingdom. " Cryg bar," or 
the barrow of anger and resentment, is supposed to 
be the place where the Romans interred some of their 
garrison, slain during the insurrection of the Britons 
under Boadicea. It is related by Tacitus, that when 
Ostorius commanded in Britain, he advanced within 
no inconsiderable distance of the channel that sepa- 
rates Great Britain from Ireland,* and that he was 
for some time stationed among the Silures, or in- 
habitants of South Wales. These circumstances evi- 
dently prove that the scene of action, for some years, 
during the contest between the Romans and the an- 
cient Britons, was not many miles distant from the spot 
before mentioned. For when Paullinus Suetonius ar- 
rived in Britain, a dangerous insurrection among the 
Silures had hardly been suppressed, it is probable 
therefore that, to restore tranquillity, he must have 
been for some time stationed in the neighbourhood. 
It is recorded by the same author, that, during the 
absence of the Roman Army on the expedition to 
Anglesey, the indignant Britons put several Roman 
garrisons to the sword, and Paullinus on his return 
gained a complete victory over them. I Paenius 
Posthumus, who had disgraced himself by his irre- 
solution and misconduct, was so mortified by his suc- 



* Annals of Tacitus, book 12, chap. 31,32, &c. 
t Annals of Tacitus, book 14, chap. 37. 



154 THE GOLD MINES OF 

cess, and so chagrined at the contempt in which he 
was held by the legion, whose military lustre he had 
sullied, that he added to his other imprudent deeds, 
the most unjustifiable of all actions, that of laying 
violent hands on himself. A stone with the inscrip- 
tion " Paenius Posthumus, &c."* was found a few 
years since by the workmen employed in the forma- 
tion of a road over the mountain from Llandovery to 
Trecastle. This has been considered as a proof that 
many of the transactions recorded by Tacitus, on the 
occasion above related, occurred at no remote distance 
from the military station at Caio. Many of the in- 
habitants of the parish regard themselves as the 
descendants of a Roman colony ; many of them are 
proud of that descent, and amongst them Roman 
names are extremely prevalent. There is an individual 
now living, who bears the name of Paullinus, but 
the modern Paullinus, instead of commanding armies, 
and invading kingdoms — such are the vicissitudes 
connected with humanity — works as a day-labourer, 
and lives contentedly in a cottage. Many further 
proofs might be adduced to corroborate the truth of 
the facts that have been stated, and to demonstrate 
that the Roman forces were, for many years, sta- 
tioned in this neighbourhood ; and no motive can be 
thought so likely to have operated on their avidity, 
and to have induced them to determine on so pro- 



* The inscription was copied by several gentlemen in the 
neighbourhood, and the stone was left by the workmen at the 
Black Cock public-house on Trecastle mountain, where it lay 
not many years since. 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 155 

tracted a residence upon such a spot, as the hopes 
from the discovery of a mine, of accumulating wealth 
and adding to their treasures. 

That the Roman soldiery, while on this station, 
were engaged in an attempt to extract gold from the 
mines discovered in the adjacent hills, is thought to 
be sufficiently proved by the vestiges of Roman art 
and military industry observable in the Ogofau, or 
caves of Caio. They are subterraneous passages, 
ramifying in various directions, and horizontally car- 
ried to a considerable distance, under a hill of no 
common altitude. They are manifestly the effects of 
human labour ; and from every evidence that can 
now be collected, they appear to have been conti- 
nued, if not originally commenced, by the enter- 
prising spirit of the Roman legions. A very different 
account of them, however, is given in the fabulous 
legends of the middle centuries. At the entrance of 
the caves lies a stone of uncommon magnitude, the 
surface of which appears excavated in five different 
places at regular distances. The cavities are of no 
great depth, and are nearly of a circular form, which 
seems to have been the origin of a fable. Five 
juvenile saints, we are informed, on their pilgrimage 
to the celebrated shrine of St. David, emaciated with 
hunger and exhausted with fatigue, here reclined 
themselves to rest, and reposed their weary heads on 
this ponderous pillow. Their eyes were soon closed 
by the powerful hand of sleep, and they were no 
longer able to resist, by the force of prayer, the arti- 
fices of their foes. The skies were suddenly obscured 
with clouds; every object disappeared, as if concealed 



156 THE GOLD MINES OF 

in the shades of the darkest night. The thunder 
rolled, the lightning flashed, and the rain fell in 
overwhelming torrents. The storm increased in ve- 
hemence, all nature became chilled with cold, and 
even piety and charity felt its effects. The drops of 
rain were soon congealed into enormous hailstones, 
which, by the force of the wind, were driven with 
so much violence on the heads of the weary pilgrims 
as to affix them to their pillow, and the vestiges they 
left are still discernible. Being borne away in triumph 
by the malignant sorcerer, who inhabits the hollows 
of these hills, they were concealed in the innermost 
recesses of his cavern, where they are destined to 
remain asleep, bound in the irrefragable chains of 
enchantment, until that happy period shall arrive y 
when the diocese shall be blessed with a pious 
bishop. For when that happens, no doubt Merlin 
himself, the enemy of malignant sorcerers, will be 
disenchanted, and he will rouse and restore to liberty 
the dormant saints, when they will immediately en- 
gage in the patriotic work of reforming the Welsh, 
who much require it. Owen Lawgoch, or Owen with 
the red hand, and his troops — the favourite heroes of 
the Welsh romancers — who are represented as now 
lying enchained by the hand of sorcery in the cave 
of Merlin, will, it is equally credited, at the same 
happy period be restored to their pristine vigour and 
activity : when they will recover the lost empire of 
the Britons, and gain them a complete triumph over 
every nation, less ignorant, less inactive, and less 
immoral than themselves. In an enchanting spot, 
embosomed in a romantic vale, on the opposite banks 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 157 

of the river Cothi, a church was erected to the me- 
mory of the sleeping pilgrims, called Llan pum Saint, 
or the church of the Jive saints, where, for many an 
obscure age, drowsy congregations nodded over their 
prayers, and slept under the soporiferous effects of 
dull and vapid discourses. They at length slept so 
profoundly, that they suffered their sacred building 
to fall in ruins : scarcely a vestige of it now remains. 
These narcotic affections, it is thought, in process of 
time became epidemical, and infected not a few of 
the adjacent parishes. Such are the fabulous legends 
that are related with great gravity by the guides, 
who generally conduct strangers through these sub- 
terraneous regions. The caverns are frequently vi- 
sited in the summer season by parties from the inn, 
in the neighbouring village of Llan pum Saint, on 
•the road leading from Llandovery to Lampeter ; and 
all who have attentively examined them, speak with 
rapture of the novelty and beauty of the scene. A 
design seems to have been formed, at some remote 
period, of excavating the whole mountain, and to a 
considerable extent the project appears to have been 
carried into execution. Long passages have been 
dug, huge pillars framed, and spacious chambers 
scooped in the rock, the lofty roofs of which, covered 
with spar and pyrites of various colours, reflect the 
light carried by the guides, with so much brilliancy, 
as at once to surprise and dazzle the beholders. A 
subterraneous stream ripples through these deserted 
mines, and the adjacent caverns echo to its murmurs. 
The variegated colours of the spar, the sudden ap- 
pearance of the water, the reverberations of the 



158 THE GOLD MINES OF 

sound from rock to rock, give an indescribable gran- 
deur and solemnity to every object, and make the 
place wear more the appearance of enchantment 
than of the works of art. The effect of music in 
this rock-formed theatre is described as at once 
pleasingly captivating and awfully sublime. 

The village of Llan pum Saint at present forms a 
part of the parish of Caio. The church or chapel, 
of which it anciently boasted, was dedicated, it is re- 
lated by antiquaries, not to the jive sleeping saints, 
but, like many others in different parts of Wales, to 
the five principal tutelar saints, natives of the Prin- 
cipality ; the most remarkable actions of whose lives 
are recorded in an old manuscript, called " Achau'r 
Saint/' or the Lives and T>escent of the Saints. The 
stone at the entrance of the caves was used, it is 
said, by the miners, not for a pillow, but for the 
purpose of clearing the secrementitious earth from 
the ore, and the cavities in it were formed by the re- 
peated stamping of the drossy substances to obtain 
more valuable matter. The rivulet that now mur- 
murs through the mines is supposed to have been 
formerly diverted into it by the miners, when they 
discovered the reddish earth, where the most valuable 
stratum commences, in order, as is customary in such 
operations, to disunite every particle of heterogeneous 
matter, and to lay the ore bare. Many of the curious, 
and some who are well skilled in the knowledge of 
minerals, have traversed these caverns to the dis- 
tance of nearly half a mile, but none now living have 
ever explored the furthest extremity of the excava- 
tions ; what appearances of a mine may be dis- 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 159 

eernible in all parts of the works cannot, therefore, 
be justly determined. Sir Joseph Banks, and several 
other persons of superior intelligence, critically ex- 
amined it, and were of opinion, that it must have 
been a gold mine in days of yore. 

That the Romans were long employed here in 
their researches after the richer metals, is fairly de- 
ducible from divers circumstances. The marks of 
their tools have been observed in various places on 
the rocks, and Roman characters have been disco- 
vered, which are supposed to have been intended for 
the initials of the names of that renowned people. 
A few years since considerable quantities of pyrites 
or marcasites of gold were met with near the surface 
of the ground, on the summit of the hill above the 
works, on the estate of John Johnes, Esq., but when 
assayed, they were found to contain nothing but sul- 
phur and salts. This discovery, however, was con- 
sidered as affording evident indications of the proxi- 
mity of a mine. The appearance of the valley, at 
the entrance of the Ogofau, is extremely singular, 
and seems greatly to favour the hypothesis, that these 
hills did contain a gold mine, and that the Romans 
were employed in pursuing it. It is a deep ravine 
of an irregular form and of unequal breadth, with the 
fragments of a huge rock standing nearly in the 
centre, resembling the ruins of a battered tower. 
The whole dingle bears indubitable traces of some 
convulsive violence, and appears as if a part of the 
rock originally stood in it, and as if a portion of the 
superincumbent hill had been rent from its base by 
an earthquake, or by the force of some unusual com- 



160 THE GOLD MINKS OF 

motion of the elements. It is asserted by Pliny, in 
his Natural History, that it was a common practice 
with the Roman soldiers, when stationed in the 
Spanish provinces, to excavate and undermine whole 
mountains suspected to contain the precious metals, 
and then to divert the course of rivers, and affuse 
them from an eminence on the works, when the im- 
petuous torrent irresistibly carried every thing before 
it, subverted the loftiest hills from their foundation, 
and precipitated the entire mass of which they were 
composed to an amazing distance. That, at conve- 
nient places, where the abated force of the current, 
and the nature of the ground appeared favourable to 
the purpose, weirs were formed, which afforded an 
uninterrupted passage to the water, but arrested the 
earth, sand, and gravel, in their course; that these 
were afterwards carefully sifted, and skilfully washed. 
If any grains of gold happened to be commixed with 
them, these grains were easily discovered, and readily 
separated from more drossy and less valuable ma- 
terials. 

A similar account of the process usually had 
recourse to by the Romans, when stationed near 
mountains supposed to abound with gold, is given by 
Rollin in his Ancient History. That operations of 
this nature were formerly attempted at these mines 
is evident from the vestiges of stupendous works 
still visible after the lapse of so many centuries, and 
the shocks of so many revolutions of nature. Several 
miles above the mines, nearer the source of the 
river Cothi, are at this time seen the remains of a 
mole constructed to confine the stream and to divert 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 161 

its course. The number and inequality of the ad- 
jacent hills, the cataracts rushing from them during 
the frequent and violent showers, which are common 
to this part of the country, must often have been the 
means of proving the strength of the dyke. Some 
marks of it however still appear, and serve to give 
some idea of the violence with which the current, 
thus opposed in its course, and swollen with floods, 
rushed over its banks, and tore up the bed of the 
river to an incredible depth. The pool formed by 
the waterfall, and immediately below the dam, is, 
from the profundity of the water, and the dusky 
appearance of the stream, denominated by the pea- 
sants, " Bwll Uffem" or the Pit of Hell. A cele- 
brated antiquary and naturalist, who lately visited 
this country to investigate these remains of Roman 
industry, attempted to cross the stream a little above 
the mole, and, having no other expedient, mounted on 
the back of one of his guides. The poor fellow, after 
tottering a few steps under his load, fell with him in 
the middle of the river. They were both saved by 
another peasant, who accompanied them, and were 
conveyed to the opposite bank without any further 
accident. The country people, with their usual 
vivacity, and love of the ridiculous, diverted them- 
selves with this incident, and represented it as a 
concerted plan between the guide and his companion, 
that the learned traveller should be thrown into the 
stream by one of them, and rescued from danger by 
the other, concluding, no doubt, that they would be 
able to obtain from his fears the reward which they 
could not expect from his liberality ; or recover 

M 



102 THE GOLD MINES OF 

salvage, as they expressed it, and divide the spoil. 
As some of them are so far favoured with the gifts 
of poetry as to be able, on an emergency, to produce 
an impromptu, several pennillion and englynion, or 
Welsh epigrams, were composed on the occasion. 
In some of them the ingenious antiquary was com- 
pared to a milch-cow withholding her milk, in order 
to obtain which, it becomes necessary to moisten the 
udder. One of these effusions, as it may serve to 
show the humour of some of our countrymen, shall 
be here inserted : 

Wyr ! dyma frodyr hyfrydiou, ywalchod 

Yn gwlychu marchogion ! 

Rhoi gwr main o Lundain Ion, 

O rhyfedd ! yn yr afon ! 

Godrwyr yw y gwyr heb gil, os pwyllo 

Ojs pallu wnar armel* 

Givlych y deth, y gwalch uchel. 

A llaith ddwrn, ar llaeth a ddel. 

Which has been thus translated : 

What blundering guides, how ill they tread ! 

To roll in mud so clear a head ! 

To plunge, — who starts not at the sight ! — 

In streams like these, so great a knight ! 

Strange guides, for verse as strange a theme, 

To guide a stranger to a stream, 

Thus on their backs a man to bear 

Into the flood, then drop him there ! 

Who dropp'd him had their views no doubt, 

As well as those who help'd him out; 

Dry-shod he hardly pays the swain, 

But dipp'd he pays as well again. 



The second milking is so called in some parts of Wales. 



THE ANCIENT BiilTONS. 1(33 

Thus by sly milk-maids we are told, 
That dry teats oft the milk withhold ; 
But if you wet them, well you know, 
The silver streams profusely flow. 

Tin arall. 
Gwr am chwech trwy a/on fechan, ddug ddyn, 
Ddigwyddoda* yn drwstan, 
" 'N y rhyd, ebef, dynaran, 
" Rho swllt, ui frysio allan." 

An other. 
A great man once, agreed his guide, 
Across a rapid stream to ride ; 
But as the fee he paid was small, 
Amidst the flood he let him fall; 
" You got in cheaply," quoth the lout, 
" What will you give to get you out? " 

From the mole or dam the water was gradually 
conducted to the summit of the highest hills, and 
conveyed by a capacious aqueduct, the vestiges of 
which may still be distinctly traced, along a ridge of 
mountains, to a distance of nearly ten miles. Whe- 
ther the magnitude and rapidity of the river, or the 
height and inequality of the ground, be considered, 
the conception of the design must be admitted to 
have been as admirable as the execution of it was 
astonishing. It was not till of late years, when the 
curiosities of nature and of art, discovered in various 
corners of the principality, began to excite the atten- 
tion which they merit, that these monuments of 
Roman industry and ingenuity were deemed worthy 
of notice. They are now justly considered as the 
most extraordinary works of the kind in Great Bri- 

* Fell, digwyddo, to fall. 



10-4 THE GOLD MINES OF 

tain, perhaps in Europe. The water in the canal on 
the summit of the hill opposite to Brunant, the seat 
of the Rev. Mr. Lloyd, must have been nearly a mile 
above the bed of the river from which it was raised. 
From that eminence this immense body of water was 
conveyed by a broad dyke, the vestiges of which are 
still discernible, to the highest part of the precipice 
immediately above the Ogofau, the mineral excava- 
tions. Here it was arrested in its course, and per- 
mitted, by means of a large reservoir, to collect its 
force before it poured itself, with its accustomed 
impetuosity, on the excavated hills below it. When 
its aid was not required to facilitate the labours of 
the miners, it was discharged through a sluice on 
the opposite side of the reservoir, and led by a wind- 
ing channel, the banks of which may now be seen 
towards the village of Caio, where it disembogued 
itself into a brook, that falls at a considerable dis- 
tance into the usual course of the Cothi. That so 
much toil and labour might not be unattended with 
some beneficial effects, the river thus raised from its 
bed was not permitted, even when not needed in the 
mines, to return to it until it had assisted in some 
work of industry likely to minister to the subsistence, 
or to the comforts, of man. On the banks of the 
new-formed canal, mills and other useful engines 
were erected, which were kept in motion by the 
agency of the water originally drawn from the river. 
The remains of one of them, called Melin Milwyr* 

* Milwyr means a thousand men, from mil, a thousand, and 
givyr, men, as they were regimented or formed into legions by 
thousands. Milwyr likewise implies soldiers. 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 165 

or the Soldier's Mill, is still shewn by the peasants 
in that neighbourhood. From the supposed etymo- 
logy of the name, they contend that a thousand men 
were in those times engaged to assist at the mill, 
and contribute to the mechanical part of the opera- 
tion — a construction, which, though not justified by 
the real import of the word, manifests their vast 
idea of the ancient magnificence of the works, and of 
the extensive scale on which they were conducted. 

Near the valuable mines of South America, en- 
gines or stamping-mills are put in requisition to 
crush the ore, or separate the dross from the metal ; 
but what were the particular uses to which that 
erected by the Roman military was applied, cannot 
now perhaps with certainty be determined. It seems, 
however, to be pretty generally admitted, by those 
who have attentively examined the works, that the 
Romans were stationed here, and that the soldiery, 
according to the usual severity of their discipline, 
must have been employed in improving the military 
roads, in forming canals, and in working the mines. 
But whether these were lead mines, or copper mines, 
as individuals variously contend, or whether they 
were gold mines, as most persons who have recently 
examined them are of opinion, must be submitted to 
the decision of scientific inquirers. Such alone are 
competent judges of the subject. That Roman 
industry and perseverance extracted gold from them 
may be admissible ; but whether they acquired it in 
such portions as would satisfy the avidity of modern 
speculators is a problem that cannot be so promptly 
solved. 



I W) III E COLD MINES OF 

But though it should be admitted that this cele- 
brated nation, by their prodigious efforts, obtained 
the precious metals in certain proportions from these 
excavated hills, it does not necessarily follow that 
the mines had been originally discovered, or previ- 
ously worked, by the ancient Britons ; and that the 
invading armies only completed what the inhabitants 
of the country had begun. There are no British 
records of credit extant that can be expected to throw 
light on the obscure transactions of so remote a period. 
It appears, however, from some fragments of the 
works of the British bards, that Caio was a place of 
considerable importance as early as the sixth cen- 
tury. It is described as a city in the elegies of 
Lly warch Hen, already so frequently cited : 

Lluest Cadwallawn tra chaer 
Caew, byddin a chynnwrf taer, 
Can cad, a thorri can caer. 

The army of Cadwallon encamped near the city 
Of Caew, a host that was stubborn in the tumult 
Of a hundred battles, and the falling of a hundred castles. 

Owen's Llywarch Hen, p. 113. 

Mr. Owen,* in a note on this passage, observes 
that " there is a place called Caeo, in Caermarthen- 
shire.*' It is necessary, however, to state that Caer 
is sometimes translated a fortress as well as a city; 
and that the lines alluded to may imply no more 
than that it was at that period a strong military 



The late lamented Dr. W. O. Pughe. 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 167 

post. But in either case it will amount to a proof, 
that it was then regarded as an important station. 
The vicinity of the mines may have been the princi- 
pal inducement for giving the preference, as a mili- 
tary residence, to a spot so destitute of other attrac- 
tions, and situated so remotely from the centre of 
the kingdom. 

The monuments of antiquity constantly discovered 
in the neighbourhood have been thought rather to 
favour the opinion, that the Britons were equally 
successful in these or some other mines in the en- 
virons. The most remarkable is a golden chain 
lately found in a field near the ancient family seat 
of John Johnes, esq. of Dolau Cothi, in this parish. 
It is supposed to have been a " torques," or mili- 
tary wreath of honour, worn by an ancient British 
chieftain of distinction. To the extremity of it was 
attached the figure of a serpent, fabricated of gold, 
of an elegant form, and beautiful workmanship, 
which has been conjectured to have been intended 
as an emblematical representation of the warrior's 
martial qualifications, implying the crafty general, 
and the formidable foe. Perhaps the " torquati," 
or the warriors ornamented with golden wreaths, 
generally wore, suspended from those chains, a 
particular figure, as an indication of their talents, or 
a memorial of their exploits ; and this may serve to 
elucidate the appellations of " lion," " eagle," 
" wolf," or " falcon," applied by the bards in their 
poems to different generals, and to illustrious British 
heroes : — 



108 THE GOLD MINIS <)!• 

Eryr Pengwern,pell gelwid he no, 
Ar waed gwyr gwelid. 

The eagle of Pengwern calls far about this night; 
On the blood of men he is seen. 

Owens Llywarck Hen, p. 82. 

Tarw trin, rhyvel adwn. 
The bull of tumult, guider of the war, &c. 

Ibid. p. 142. 

This proof of ancient British military splendour, 
discovered near the mines of Caio, was a few years 
since shewn to a celebrated antiquary and natural 
philosopher, at the hospitable mansion of Dolau 
Cothi, and the figure of the dragon or serpent was 
presented to him, to be deposited in the archives of 
the Antiquarian Society. The chain is still in the 
possession of Mr. Johnes ; it is of considerable 
length, and must have been of sufficient extent seve- 
ral times to encircle the warrior's neck. It is desti- 
tute of any ornamental work, but is neat and elegant; 
each link being about an inch in length, and the 
whole being of very simple construction. The gold 
is much purer than any at present in common use, 
and the prodigious quantity of that valuable metal 
expended on a badge of honour, so frequently worn, 
has been considered a cogent argument in favour of 
those who contend that there were gold mines in this 
neighbourhood in former days, and who are of 
opinion that they were not unknown to the Britons.* 



* Most indubitable proofs have lately been discovered to 
establish the fact beyond the possibility of a doubt; that the 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 169 

But as the people of these districts were late in 
their submission to the Romans, and opposed them 
not unsuccessfully in arms, at the period when other 
parts of the island were reduced to a tributary state; 
it has been thought that the gold mines of Cunobe- 
linus must necessarily be sought for in some corner 
of the country more accessible to the Roman forces, 
and inhabited by tribes more tractable in their dispo- 
sition, and less determined in their resistance to 
invading enemies. The Trinobantes, or the Trano- 
vantiaid, influenced by their king Mandubratius, 
are described by Caesar as the first people among 
the Britons that subjected themselves to a foreign 
yoke, and that suffered the conquerors to lay their 
country under a contribution. Several authors of 
considerable credit, therefore, have been of opinion, 
that the mines of Cunobelinus must have been 
situated somewhere within the counties of Essex or 
Middlesex, the provinces originally inhabited by the 
Trinobantes. Dr. Plot, in his Natural History of 
Oxfordshire, and Morant, in his History of Essex, 
are the most eminent writers who have adopted that 
opinion. The former contends that mines are fre- 



mines in Wales, particularly the coal mines, were worked by the 
Britons as well as by the Romans. A flint hatchet was found 
stuck in a coal vein, in a mine in North Wales; and in another 
pit in the same country were found the bones of an elephant. 
Flint tools were used by the Britons, before the application of 
iron to common purposes, and elephants were introduced to this 
island by the Romans, and used to work the machinery at the 
mines, &c. See Pennant's Tour through North Wales, and 
Goldsmith's Animated Nature. 



170 THE GOLD MINES OF 

quently lost through the supineness of an ignorant 
age, or the storms of domestic trouble. In support 
of his hypothesis, he instances those of Hungary, 
which were long lost, and in process of time were 
again partially discovered; and* " the gold mines 
of Cunobelinus, in Essex," lost many centuries 
since, and not yet effectually regained. The res- 
pected author f of the natural history of the latter 
county states it as an opinion possessing many advo- 
cates, that the excavations now denominated the 
" Dane Holes," were originally entrances into these 
golden regions. This question, however, having at 
different periods excited the curiosity of the public, 
the most unobjectionable method will be to attempt 
a summary account of every notion entertained on 
the subject, and to submit the whole to the candid 
decision of the reader. 

The " Dane Holes," doubtless very extraordinary 
and almost inexplicable excavations that have long 
puzzled investigators of the natural history of that 
county, are narrow pits or shafts sunk in the earth, 
in a direction perpendicular to the horizon, to the 
depth of sixty, seventy, or ninety feet, or more, in 
sundry places in Orsett, West Thurrock, and the 
neighbouring parishes. Some think that they were 
originally designed for chalk pits ; and, as this fossil 
is often used in husbandry as a substitute for lime, 
they contend that the shafts, so commonly observed 



* See Dr. Plot's History of Oxfordshire. 

t Morant's History of Essex, in his account of the parishes of 
Orsett, West Thurrock, &e. 



T H E A N C I K N T J5R ITON S . 171 

in this county, were at various periods sunk by the 
different proprietors of the adjacent estates, in 
order to obtain manure for improving and fertilizing 
their land. The opponents of this hypothesis, on 
the contrary, represent it as a ridiculous conceit, to 
suppose their provident ancestors to have been so 
preposterously extravagant as to incur the unneces- 
sary expense of sinking shafts to such a depth to 
obtain, for the mere amelioration of the soil, that 
manure which could be abundantly procured in all 
parts of the neighbourhood, within a yard or two of 
the surface of the earth. Chalk, they add, is a 
substance found in most of the counties of England, 
without the expense and labour of these extraordi- 
nary excavations, while the " Dane Holes" are not 
only peculiar to this county, but are confined within 
no extensive portion of it. Others, in order to avoid 
the absurdities attending the chalk system, maintain, 
from the fancied etymology of the name, that they 
were subterraneous places of refuge, in which the 
Danes attempted to conceal themselves, at the 
memorable period of the massacre of those invaders 
by the exasperated Saxons. But this, it is answered, 
is endeavouring to avoid one absurdity, and falling 
into a greater. For these narrow pits could afford 
but an indifferent asylum, where the miserable fugi- 
tives might secure themselves, nor did they admit of 
any egress or any means of eluding the fury of their 
enraged enemies. And it is observed, if ever the 
Danes did descend, on such an occasion, into these 
tremendous gulfs, they must have descended into 
open sepulchres, where the feeblest foe might crush 



172 mil: gold mines of 

them, and where the artful could readily have in 
terred them alive. As it is not probable, it is fur- 
ther argued, that the English would have given their 
foes long previous notice of the intended massacre, 
it seems rather an extraordinary circumstance, that 
they should have found time and resolution for so 
laborious an operation ; and if ever they engaged in 
such an enterprize, it excites astonishment to reflect 
that they should not attempt to form the place of 
their intended retreat on a safer plan, or on a more 
extensive scale. 

If they were known before this period, the Danes 
in the hour of distress, might have fled for refuge 
to an asylum originally opened for another purpose. 
But, this is no argument against the truth of 
the golden hypothesis ; for the retreat of the Danes 
into them — supposing that fact sufficiently au- 
thenticated — is no evidence that the shafts were 
not originally sunk to approach a mine, and neither 
of the systems above mentioned can be considered 
as any reasonable presumption against the truth of 
the fact, of their being in the first instance designed 
as vestibules of mines.* The subsequent discovery 



* In further corroboration of the truth of this opinion, it is 
added, that the names of places, in which the Dane Holes are 
principally found, are favourable to the notion, that Thurrock is 
derived from the British words Tir-Eurych, Goldsmith's-land ; 
and Orsett from Aursedd, Golden-seat, or Golden-habitation : 
sedd bearing in ancient British the import of the word seat in 
English, as may be observed in the compound word Gorsedd, a 
throne, &c. That the original inhabitants left, in the names of 
many places in Essex, evident vestiges of their language, as in 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 173 

of various fossils in them might serve to prove, that 
those who possessed not skill to penetrate into more 
valuable strata might yet have the ingenuity to 
possess themselves of the humbler mineral of chalk. 
And the retreat of the Danes into them might be no 
more an evidence of their being designed as an asy- 
lum, than the escape of an offender to the mines of 
Cornwall would be a proof, that those excavations 
were intended as a receptacle for felons. The ap- 
pellation of " Dane Holes," by which these mines 
are now known, might have arisen, it is argued, from 
the circumstance of a few Danes having taken re- 
fuge there on the occasion before mentioned; or it 
might have originated in the fact of the citizens 
of London having had recourse to these gold mines 
to discharge the Dane-guelt, the tax anciently im- 
posed on the city by the Danes. It is observed by 
Morant, in his History of that county, that it is diffi- 
cult to imagine on any other ground, how the citi- 
zens should be able, in that age, to collect the 
enormous contribution which the rapacious Danes 
had imposed on them. Those who have adopted 
this side of the question further contend for the 



Ongar, Ash-town, from onn, an ash, and caer, a fortress, a 
place remarkable for a large conical tumulus, most probably 
raised by the Britons. Billericay, Pillarfield, from Piler, a 
pillar, and cae, a field, i Bilery cae, to Billericay. A large 
stone set up as a pillar, in a neighbouring field, might have been 
the origin of the name. Avon, the name of several rivers in 
England, seems to have arisen from the Saxons mistaking the 
common name Avon, a river, used, by the British, for a proper 
name of a particular stream. 



1 7 4 TI I E G O LD MI \ IS O F 

probability of their having had recourse, on such 
an occasion, to the mines in the royalty of Essex. 
Though the mines were not productive enough to 
encourage mercenary adventurers, sufficient metal, 
on such an emergency, might have been extracted 
from them, by united efforts and persevering indus- 
try, to appease, for a season, the harshness and the 
intemperate avidity of these merciless invaders. It 
is further added, that, about the fourteenth century, 
these gold mines were actually worked with some 
degree of success; for a royal favourite having ob- 
tained a grant of them, which is still on record, a 
company of German miners were engaged, and cer- 
tain quantities of the metal being extracted, the 
prospects for a season appeared extremely favour- 
able. That their mineral efforts did not prove 
finally successful is attributed to the cupidity and 
treachery of the Germans, and to the domestic 
troubles of the times, as well as to the subsequent 
shocks of civil commotions, which retarded their 
operations, and at length forced them from the 
country. It is added, that, in Cambden's time, 
many vestiges of these mines remained, which are 
now obliterated. There were then in existence 
some apertures of great depth in the ground below 
Tilbury, ingeniously walled round from the base to 
the top, in the form of a cone or glass-house, to pre- 
vent the falling in of the surrounding lands, and 
there was also an entrance into a spacious horizontal 
excavation in a field in the parish of East Tilbury, 
called " Cave Field," &c. It is likewise observed, 
that about the commencement of the last century, 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 175 

another attempt was made to recover these golden 
treasures. A royal grant for that purpose was ob- 
tained, and measures, that it was hoped would suc- 
ceed, were taken, to derive from it every desirable 
effect; but the immediate operations not answering, 
and the South Sea Bubble bursting about the same 
time, the enterprize became unpopular, and the 
adventurers were discouraged. The unfavourable 
issue of this attempt, it is alleged, is not so much a 
proof of the non-existence of the mine, as it is an 
evidence of the incapacity of the conductors. If 
the ore was obtained here in the fourteenth, it is 
scarcely credible, after so long a respite, that it 
should be found exhausted in the eighteenth cen- 
tury. It is not to be believed that time would have 
destroyed here what in other places it mellows and 
improves. Consequently, the mineral productions 
which our ancestors enjoyed might still be acquired, 
were their descendants possessed of equal industry 
and equal ingenuity. 

It is further remarked, that the proximity of a 
mine is frequently presumed from the unheal thiness 
of the atmosphere, which particularly distinguishes 
this part of Essex — from the natural sterility of the 
soil, as is observable in the heaths, and in all the 
uncultivated land around — and from mineral springs, 
which are found at Tilbury, and other places at no 
remote distance. Lastly, if the veracity of the story 
of the rich treasures of Cunobelinus be admitted, 
this county seems to have the fairest claim to the 
honour of containing them, from its proximity to the 
scene of action, distinguished by Caesar's earliest 



I 7G THE GOLD MINKS OF 

contests witli the Britons, his victory over Cassivel- 
launus, his passage over the Thames, and his final 
arrangement with the inhabitants to accept from 
them of an annual tribute, and to leave them unmo- 
lested. 

Such are the different opinions that have been 
entertained of these extraordinary excavations, and 
such is the substance of the arguments on which 
these various opinions have been founded. To de- 
cide these controversies relative to the mineralogy 
of the county, a gentleman of the cathedral of Can- 
terbury, distinguished for his love of natural history, 
and his knowledge of the antiquities of his country, 
formed the extraordinary resolution of descending 
into one of these caverns. He took with him an 
eminent surgeon, with the intention, doubtless, in 
case of accidents, of profiting by his advice and 
assistance. A rope was procured, and thrown over 
a pulley, attached to a neighbouring tree. To the 
lower extremity of the rope a strong piece of wood 
was horizontally fastened. Seated on this, and 
bearing a light, an intrepid peasant first descended. 
He had scarcely reached the bottom, when by some 
mischance the light was extinguished. His boasted 
intrepidity forsook him, and he became petrified with 
horror, at the apprehension of evils with which he 
was unacquainted, and against which he was unpre- 
pared. He imagined he saw another pit, still more 
profound and more tremendous, yawning to receive 
him. A light having been procured from a neigh- 
bouring farm-house, the other adventurers unter- 
rified at the peasant's fear-born exclamations, sue- 



THE AXCIENT BRITON'S. 177 

cessively descended. The depth was about seventy 
feet. The different strata were accurately examined 
as the adventurers passed. They were found to 
consist chiefly of earth, gravel, and sand ; and at 
the bottom appeared a bed of chalk. At the lower 
extremity of the shaft, four excavations were hori- 
zontally made in four different directions — they were 
continued but a few yards, and were of no con- 
siderable depth. The fears of the peasant, excited 
as they had been in obscurity, were not calmed on 
the appearance of the light, when he discovered 
himself standing on a human skeleton of gigantic 
size, most of the bones of which, in his agitation, he 
had trampled to pieces ! At some distance, lay on the 
ground the skeletons of several badgers, rabbits, and 
hares, which were supposed to have fallen accident- 
ally into this hideous gulf, as they were gamboling 
through the woods, or roving in quest of food. The 
human skeleton, it was conjectured, had remained 
there many years, for on its being rudely touched, it 
crumbled to dust. No marks were discovered 
that could lead to a decision whether it was the 
skeleton of a person who had been murdered and 
thrown in, or of one who, at some remote period,, 
had fallen into the terrific abyss. The mouth of 
the excavation is obscured by the shade of a tree, 
and the sides are concealed by weeds and low brush- 
wood. An unfrequented path leads to a field from 
the road, within a yard of the aperture, which is 
not covered, and the ground sinuous and uneven, 
broken as it is into knolls and sandpits, slopes 

N 



178 THE GOLD MINES OF 

towards the mine. To scarcely any spot can the 
poet's expression, 

" Facilis est descensus Averni," 

be more applicable. That such an accident should 
take place is not so much the object of astonish- 
ment, as that similar misfortunes are not frequent. 
As the head of the human skeleton appeared to be 
considerably above the common size, the Esculapian 
enterpriser enveloped it in his handkerchief; but, in 
his ascent, lie was more careful to prevent his own 
pericranium from coming- in contact with the sides of 
the shaft than to guard his treasure, and on after- 
wards examining the object of curiosity, which he 
had intended for his museum, he found that it was 
battered to pieces. 

This expedition into these subterraneous regions 
totally failed of deciding the controversy relative to 
the original design of the " Dane holes." The sup- 
porters of the " chalk system" contended that the 
appearance of a bed of that fossil at the bottom, was 
a clear proof of the intention of sinking the shaft: — 
the advocates of the hypothesis, that it was an 
asylum for the Danes, laboured to prove, that the 
excavations in the chalk, at the lower extremity of 
the pit, were intended as places of refuge for the 
fugitives, when threatened with immediate extermi- 
nation. The patrons of the gold mines, on the con- 
trary, while they laugh as well at the thought of a 
shaft sunk to such a depth, and at such an expence, 
merely to obtain two or three waggon loads of chalk, 



THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 



179 



which might have been found on the surface of the 
earth — as at the notion of a subterraneous asylum, 
prepared with such prodigious labour, that would 
not contain forty fugitives ; they boast of their own 
hypothesis, as the most consistent and the most 
probable. They maintain that gold mines generally 
run to the depth of a hundred and fifty or sixty 
fathoms, but that these shafts, at present, are seldom 
a third of that depth, because the Britons had closed 
these mines in order to conceal them from the 
Romans, that they might not excite their avidity, 
and tempt them to continue their unwelcome visits 
to the island. This part of the country, they say, 
was anciently excavated in various places, but the 
apertures were, at a subsequent period, carefully con- 
cealed ; as might be instanced in the ground where 
Stafford fair was formerly kept, which gave way 
some years since, to the no small terror and conster- 
nation of the populace, and sunk in some places to a 
considerable depth. The strongest proofs can be 
adduced to demonstrate, that the ancient Britons 
possessed the precious metals in profusion, that they 
applied them to ornamental purposes, and that they 
had made greater proficiency in the arts, and had 
attained to a greater degree of civilization than 
Roman authors seem in general willing to admit. 
It is hardly credible that those who possessed war 
chariots of such admirable construction, and could 
guide them with so much dexterity and address; 
could stop them on a descent, and turn them at 
pleasure when in full career ; could spring on the 
ground, and continue the combat, when this could 



180 THE GOLD MINES OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 

be done more advantageously on foot, that they 
could then vault to their seats, and drive through 
the disordered ranks of their enemies, so that Caesar 
confessed his best troops were not able to face them, 
and had not a more honourable way of succeeding 
against them than by fomenting their intestine divi- 
soins, and taking advantage of their want of union 
among themselves. It is not probable, so it is con- 
tended, that those, whom their very enemies admit 
to have been so well provided with warlike instru- 
ments, and to have been so dexterous in the use of 
them, so well furnished with cavalry, and so rich in 
well-formed chariots of war, should be so uncivilized 
as Caesar, in other parts of his Commentaries, seems 
to insinuate, or that they were otherwise barbarians, 
than as Greek and Roman writers honour all nations, 
except their own, with that appellation. 

Such are the systems that have been formed on 
this interesting subject, and such are the different 
opinions that have been entertained with respect to 
them — opinions which, though it may not be neces- 
sary to adopt them, it may be useful to know. 
Some of the most plausible may excite further en- 
quiries.; a more minute search, rationally conducted, 
should it fall short of a more profitable, or a more 
satisfactory, termination, may tend to throw no small 
portion of light on the manners and customs of our 
ancestors, as well as materially to illustrate the his 
tory and topography of the country. 



A SKETCH 



OF THE 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS 



UNDER FIVE EPOCHS. 



EPOCH I. 

ORIGIN OF THE BRITONS — THEIR HISTORY UNTIL THE 
INVASION OF BRITAIN BY THE ROMANS. 



Chapter I. 

Preliminary Observations. — Ancient Documents, often imper- 
fect unless assisted by facts. — The nature of those facts. 

It is proposed in the following treatise to throw 
some new light upon the history of a nation, whose 
origin, in common with the generality of others, is 
involved in much obscurity and fable. 

By taking up the subject with the first ingress of 
mankind into Europe, we enter into a gloomy wil- 
derness, in which the most enterprizing and skilful, 
who have gone before, have been bewildered, owing 
to the uncertain tendency of the tracks hitherto dis- 
covered. Had we begun with the remarkable epoch. 



182 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

of the invasion of Britain by the Romans, the path 
would have been tolerably unobstrueted ; but, urged 
by a little emulation, a passion prevalent in the human 
breast, we have been tempted boldly to encounter 
those dangers that have proved so fatal to others ; con- 
scious, at the same time, of possessing some advan- 
tages which our precursors had not ; though compa- 
ratively speaking, they may be few and humble, yet 
they are very much to the purpose of the undertak- 
ing. The notices given in sacred history, and what 
is to be found in the writings of Greece and Rome, 
are all the aids which can be had towards discri- 
minating between the different people, who, in the 
early periods, burst the western bounds of Asia ; 
except what additional light may be diffused from an 
accurate examination of their respective languages, 
personal characteristics, and habits of life. What 
ancient authors have touched upon, relative to this 
epoch, is often very general and vague ; so that 
most late writers have been misled, and in some in- 
stances have contributed to accumulate inconsisten- 
cies and embarrassments — mostly, perhaps, from an 
attachment to some ingenious hypothesis, or from 
their not being thoroughly acquainted with corrobo- 
rative facts. Having thus hinted at the insufficiency 
of historical memorials towards ascertaining certain 
points, without some coincident and accessory evi- 
dences, it ought to be considered what the leading 
features of those proofs are which lead to the clearest 
demonstration. Identity of languages is the least 
fallible of any, though some of the principal dis- 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 183 

tinctions observed in the external appearance of the 
human frame may admit of considerable certainty ; 
but comparisons drawn from religion, polity, and 
manners, are very little to be relied upon. It is only 
from an intimate knowledge of any of these, that a 
sober deduction can be expected ; without that, the 
mind ranges into extravagant fantasies; hence we 
meet with so many illusory and far-fetched analogies, 
which have brought investigations of this nature into 
considerable discredit with the sensible part of man- 
kind, whose attention may be casually attracted to 
the subject. The first especially, from the vague 
and superficial manner in which it has been pur- 
sued, is seemingly under a greater degree of con- 
tempt than any investigation constructed upon either 
of the other two. Yet these are the only guides 
now remaining, by which we can ascertain the 
origin of certain ancient nations, who have been 
confounded together by early writers, for want of 
more accurate information. The whole of Europe is 
inhabited by two generic races of men, with the 
exception of a portion of no considerable extent in 
the North East, the abode of the primitive Tartars. 
That being the case, every distinction observed be- 
tween one nation and another, as to the external 
appearance of the human frame, can only be of a 
trifling and an inconsiderable nature, which may, 
probably with reason, be attributed to the effect of 
climate and mode of life. Consequently, any opi- 
nion formed upon such distinctions is little to be 
attended to ; especially when we reflect upon the 



184 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

frequent commixtures which have necessarily oc- 
curred, from the condition in which, by the aid of 
history and experience, we see the state of this 
quarter of the world. The least dependence of all 
should be placed upon arguments drawn from a 
comparison of the religion, laws, and customs of 
different nations. The picture of one will as well 
suit another in the most distant clime, in the same 
state of progression towards civilized society. More- 
over, we are extremely liable to be deceived for 
want of information in the delineator ; as they are 
matters requiring the nicest discernment of the sub- 
ject, and accuracy of judgment to form the result 
of what is seen, so as to draw the leading traits 
of the character with a just and discriminating 
hand.* 

It is, nevertheless, by such tests, and chiefly 
by the former, that we are to endeavour to judge 
more precisely to what nations respectively belong 
the appellations of Cimbri, Celts, Gauls, Scythians, 

* What cause of regret have we for want of this discrimina- 
tion in the early history of this island ; what numberless absur- 
dities and contradictions do we find in the works of modern his- 
torians, but with one distinguished exception. It needs hardly 
to be mentioned, that the writings of the Rev. Mr. Whitaker are 
meant here, as they may be said to form a new epoch in British 
history. We are sorry to lessen his fame even in the least im- 
portant points, but the truth of history urges us to wish that he 
had possessed a greater knowledge of the language of the an- 
cient Britons , so that his etymologies might have equalled every 
thing else advanced by him, as mistakes of that kind are more 
detrimental in his works than in those of a less distinguished 
writer. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 185 

Sarmatians, and Goths, and the many variations of 
them, by tracing out their descendants, as they are 
now to be recognized in the different parts of the 
European countries. 



Chapter II. 

The nature of the primitive Language of Europe, and 
Language in general. 

In the endeavours made to determine dubious points 
respecting the origin of nations, signal advantage 
might be derived from recurring to the aids which 
the identity of language is capable of affording, if 
received with due discretion. As it is intended par- 
ticularly to recur to those aids in this work, it may 
not be amiss to enter into a cursory investigation of 
some unnoticed principles of this wonderful medium 
for the display of the human mind.* 

We are inclined to support the opinion of those 
who contend that speech is coeval with the first of 
men. There are some who are ever ready to treat 
such a simple suggestion with great ridicule, who 
would wish to persuade us that man was for ages mute, 



* If the reader wishes to see a general investigation of language 
and writing, he will meet with abundant satisfaction in perusing 
that stupendous monument of human research, C. Gibelin du 
Monde Primitif. There he will discover that this learned man 
has retrieved the lost credit of etymological researches in his 
display of the original language in Europe. 



186 HISTORY OF THE BIUTOXS. 

and had a long tail, like many other of his brother 
animals; but having a superior instinct for imita- 
tion, he copied from all the creation around him, 
as chance directed. Had the abettors of the latter 
hypothesis given us the analysis of language as it 
really is, and not as they, without a thorough ex- 
amination, have supposed it to be, they would in 
that case have proved, that there is some apparent 
foundation for a fact as strange as it is unac- 
countable. 

However, the supporting of one opinion or the 
other has little connexion with the present enquiry ; 
let us therefore proceed, and endeavour to arrive at 
some knowledge of the nature of that tongue which 
primarily and universally prevailed over Europe, so 
as to sketch out the elementary structure of it, with 
the aid that can be obtained by consulting some 
of its principal component parts. The human voice 
is capable of uttering nearly three hundred simple 
sounds ; that is, such as are perfectly vocal, or such 
as are articulate, consisting of a vowel and a conso- 
nant. All other sounds are only derivatives, or com- 
binations of these. It would be a natural and an 
important discovery, could the fact be established, 
that every one of those primary sounds should have 
an appropriate simple idea annexed to it, and that 
the sounds and ideas should mutually enter into 
every combination which might take place, in form- 
ing longer words. But there are individuals, of the 
way of thinking before hinted at, who suppose that 
language was acquired progressively, and conse- 
quently that every sound had a certain import af- 



HISTORY OF THE BRITOXS. 187 

fixed by chance. Notwithstanding what may be so 
suggested, it will not be difficult to demonstrate the 
first formation of speech to have been strictly so, 
that all the sounds were classed according to the 
different sorts of ideas with which the mind would 
be necessarily impressed. Some may urge that such 
a regularity of construction could not have taken 
place : unless men were acquainted with each other's 
ideas, which could not have been before the medium 
for that end was formed. Surprizing and unaccount- 
able as the fact may be deemed, we find not only 
that the structure is thus far perfect, but that it is 
so in a much greater degree ; for as the primary 
or simple ideas of the mind would properly divide 
themselves into a variety of classes, according to 
their analogy, so it is observable that all the simple 
sounds are appropriated to those ideas, methodically 
preserving the like analogy in sound, as the others 
preserve it in sense. Shall we suppose that pri- 
marily speech consisted merely of simple sounds, or 
that the combination of those sounds was coeval with 
it ? The former seemingly was the fact, as some 
languages tend to prove.* However from the ne- 
cessary connexion between some sounds and their 
relative ideas, man was not long before he com- 
pounded them. The first effects of composition 
were words of two sounds, such as man, bar, anu, 
canu, and the like. All words of three letters with 



* The Welsh in particular ; and indeed, from what little we 
know of it, the Chinese seems partly of that form to this day. 



188 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

a vowel in the middle have invariably suffered an 
elision of another preceding it, the one that remains 
being that part of the sound upon which the prin- 
cipal idea depends. Every particle of the original 
language must have been pregnant with thought, for 
not a sound could be uttered but it had some mean- 
ing, whether alone or compounded with others, as 
may be easily proved, for in the Welsh this is so far 
observable, that these primary elements have been 
preserved, with the exception, probably, of three or 
four score. Those affixes which form the inflexions 
of verbs are real words, significant in themselves of 
the time or action which they are intended to imply, 
and they were so used separately or otherwise, and 
are so still in the last mentioned language.* If the 
appropriate ideas could be restored to the few ele- 
mentary sounds which are now no longer retained in 
that tongue, it is presumed that the positions here 
laid down would be established, and the original 
language not only of Europe, but of the world in all 
probability be completely restored. All the languages 
of Europe evidently discover one common origin, 
they are therefore formed upon those simple sounds 
with their connected abstract ideas. What consti- 
tutes that diversity which we find, is the appro- 

* All those inflexions which denote action or motion are de- 
rived from Au, to move, to go ; and infinitively, that is going, 
causing to move. The Rev. Dr. Vincent, by dint of acuteness of 
judgment and learning, has discovered that it is nearly so in Greek 
verbs, and makes gw the root. A knowledge of the Welsh would 
have shewn him a more regular deduction, and enabled him to 
bring his system to greater perfection. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS, 189 

priation of them to a variety of objects, to either of 
which the general idea would equally apply. Thus, 
such a word as Ffordd might imply a road in one 
dialect, and a ford, passage, or course in another ; 
or Rhyd, a ford, should again mean a road, as the 
fact actually is. However contrary to this, in a 
vast number, the same appropriation runs through 
languages in general.* Possibly the confusion of 
languages, amongst those concerned in the tumul- 
tuary insurrection of Babel, was the effect of merely 
altering the appropriation to particulars which still 
belonged to the same general idea, for the conse- 
quence of it seems more evident in that respect pro- 
bably than in any thing else that can be suggested. 
And this would be fully adequate to the design, and 
at the same time without any real change taking- 
place in the abstract signification of a single word. 
That there is an instability in languages is a re- 
mark very commonly met with, but it is far from 
being just, as will be evinced in the course of the 
following chapters, from very striking examples. 
Perhaps the language which the Saxons brought 
over to Britain has been oftener exposed than any 
to the greatest hazard of a total change, and it may 
have undergone a change more complete than any 
other language ; yet after all it has preserved its 
original Teutonic stamina. 

* The Welsh word for heaven is found in no fewer than thirty 
different dialects, as may be seen by consulting Chamberlayn's 
Collection of the Lord's Prayer. We might also select fifty 
principal words in the Welsh which run through about as many 
languages. 



190 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

The most general cause of the variety of dialects 
then is that change of the appropriation ; however, 
there is another more early in its origin than that, 
which is the diversity in the combination of primi- 
tive sounds, or the compounding of words, by people 
detached from one another. But all had the same 
stock of primary words, joined to the same abstract 
ideas. 

The foregoing positions cannot be seen in their full 
force, unless they are elucidated by a complete system 
of examples, which cannot be with propriety intro- 
duced here.* At the same time it may not be foreign 
to the subject to introduce a few instances, lest 
the preceding observations should be considered as 
merely loose assertions without proof. All the words 
of the primitive tongue, in their first state of combi- 
nation, were resolvable into classes, where each word 
in every particular class preserved the analogy or 
general idea of the whole. The nature of that ana- 
logy may be seen by examining this class, taken from 
the Welsh ; all the words of which are reducible 
into classes in the same manner.^ Rhen, Supreme 
Being. 



* This illustration cannot be carried on to great extent, or in 
a manner to be relied upon, but by the knowledge of the Welsh 
language, taking advantage, however, of its sister dialects. A 
work of this kind was published some years ago, by Dr. Owen 
Pughe, of which a Dictionary, containing upwards of a hundred 
thousand regularly formed words, constitutes an important part. 

t There seems a little of that analogy in some English words, 
as sight, light, bright; but it does not go through the whole 
class. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 191 

Pen, head; chief, principal. 

Lien, veil, or what is over. 

Nen, vault, or canopy ; sky. 

Cen, what is foremost. 

Hen, that is advanced ; elder, old. 

Sen, what makes conspicuous, a stigma, a name. 

Gen, intellect, or soul ; the organ of utterance, or mouth. 

Fen, a flowing principle ; air. 

The same word used in different languages pre- 
serves the general idea, differently appropriated ; and 
by this is discovered also, if the abstract meaning be 
correctly known, the reason of the various appropria- 
tions of such word ; of which the following may 
serve for illustration : * Bdl, s. m. (by-al) general 
import — what runs out, or jets, from any centre ; 
what projects; what is driven out, extended, ad- 
vanced, raised or erected ; — a projection, a forcing 
out, or impelling ; a prominence. Appropriated im- 
ports — a heap, a pile, a mound, a cone, a peak, a 
hill ; a bud ; a boll. Derivatives — Bala, a shooting 
out or discharging ; an eruption ; a budding ; an 
outlet ; an efflux ; Balan, a springing out, a shoot- 
ing, a budding, or sprouting ; Balannawl, springing, 
shooting forth ; Balannu, to spring, or shoot forth, 
to bud; Balan, to spring, or shoot out, to project, or 
drive out; Balaw, efflux of water; Balawg, spring- 
ing out, jetting ; having an outlet ; Balu, to jet, 
shoot or project, &c. 



* A long list of particular words might be made out, exhibit- 
ing a more striking affinity; but this specimen is intended to 
shew what may be done, by going regularly through different 
languages 



192 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 



Derivative appropriation in different languages. 



WELSH. 

Balac, what stands up ; a balk, 
a ridge of land unploughed ; 
an irregularity in a furrow. 
With its derivatives. 

Batch, a towering or proud 
one; a. prominent, towering, 
proud. With its derivatives. 

Baldardd, a budding, or break- 
ing out of buds. With its 
derivatives. 

Baldog, a fat punchy person. 

Baldordd, a babbling or prat- 
tling. With its derivatives. 

Balgur, a breaking forth, a 
springing out. 

Balwg, the tufts or seed of flax. 

Balalwy, a palm tree. 

Ball, a protuberance ; an erup- 
tion ; the plague. 

Ballasg, the husky coat of 
some fruits ; as nuts, &c. 

Ballaw, to shout, to bellow, to 
scream. 

Ballawg, a hedge-hog. 

Balleg, a wheel, or bow net. 

IRISH. 

Bal, a place, a spot ; a rock ; 

a village. 
Balach, a giant. 
Baladh, effluvia, scent, or 

smell. 
Balaighe, profit, advantage. 
Balbh, a stammerer. 
Bale, great, mighty, strong. 



Bale, a crustiness, or hardness 

of the surface of the earth. 
Ball, a limb, or member; a 

way. 
Balg, an open or great gap. 
Balla, a wall ; a bulwark. 
Ballach, a way, a road. 
Ballach, speckled, or spotted. 
Ballan, a teat, a dug ; a shell, 

a snail shell. 
Ballardhaim, to divulge, or 

report. 
Ballasdadh, a publishing, or 

setting forth. 
Balchrith, trembling. 
Ballghalar, a plague. 
Ballnasg, the limbs, or joints. 
Ballog, the skull ; a blot or 

spot. 
Ballsg, a freckle, spot or blot. 
Baltadh, a border, or welt. 
Baltin, health, safety. 

ARMORIC. 

Bal, a berry. 

Balaen, broom ; a besom. 

Balan, broom. 

Balaven, a butterfly. 

Bale, to walk. 

Balec, a priest. 

Bali, a high grown wood. 

Balin, a coverlet. 

HEBREW. 
Bal, to throw together, to mix, 
to confound. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 



193 



Bala, to waste, to decay; to 
destroy ; this word and its 
derivatives seem to have had 
their meaning in the He- 
brew, from the dispersion at 
Babel. 

Baloth, balim, dsemons ; the 
three sons of Noah. 

Jebeleth, a wen ; having a wen. 

Bui, a stump of a tree ; Octo- 
ber, the fall of the leaf. 

Mebul, a deluge or flood, an 
overwhelming. 

Tebel, the canopy of the sky, 
the atmosphere, the air. 

Baleg, to encourage, to 
strengthen. 

Baal, to be supreme or master; 
to have dominion ; to use. 

Baal, the object of worship 
amongst the Babylonians, 
and the neighbouring na- 
tions, which was the sun or 
fire, under many symbols. 

GREEK. 

Balagra, a key, a lock or bolt. 
Balanos, mast ; acorn. 
Balantion, a pouch, purse, or 

bag. 
Balenatos, kingly, royal. 
Balbis, a bar or rail. 
Balios, various ; speckled ; 

rapid. 
Ballo, to throw, to fling; to 

shoot, to dart. 
Balloth, offensive horehound. 
Balsamon, the tree or juice of 

balm. 



SAXO-GOTHIC. 
Bale, a balk or line of un- 

ploughed land. 
Balcettan,X.obt\c\\,\.o eructate. 
Bald, bold, audacious, forward. 
Baldsam, balsam, balm. 
Balew, balewa, depraved, 

wicked. 
Balgs, the uterus, the womb. 
Balo, wicked, evil. 
Balsagga, the neck. 
Balsan, balsam or balm. 
Balsminte, the watercress. 
Balweins, a rack ; a hurling 

engine. 
Balwjan, to turn about, to 

hurl ; to rack. 
Balwith, bending ; turned, 

twisted. 

LATIN. 

Balcena, a vast sea-fish, a kind 

of whale. 
Balanites, a kind of round 

chesnuts. 
Balanus, mast, acorn ; a kind 

of shellfish. 
Balatro, a pitiful fellow, a 

shabby rascal. 
Balatus, a bleating of sheep. 
Balbus, stammering, stuttering. 
Balbutio, to stammer, to stutter. 
Balliolus, a negro, a moor. 
Ballista, an engine to throw 

missiles, a brake or sling. 
Ballote, stinking horehound. 
Balo, to bleat as sheep. 
Balteus, a girdle, a sword-belt. 



194 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 



GERMAN. 

Bal, a bad action, a wicked 
deed ; misery, grief. 

Balbier, a barber or shaver. 

Bald, bold, audacious ; confi- 
dent, strong ; abrupt, short. 

Baldgreik, groundsel, ground 
swell. 

Balei, jurisdiction, bailiwick. 

Balg, a coat or skin, felt; a 
husk, a capsula ; the uterus, 
the young of any animal ; a 
budget ; a strumpet. 

Balgen, to divest of husks, to 
shell, to 'peel ; to brawl, to 
scold, to be angry. 

Balger, a duellist or fighter. 

Balke, a balk or beam. 

Ball, a dance, a frisk or skip. 

Balle, a bale, a bundle. 

Balz, lusus venereus. 

SWEDISH. 

Balja, a large vessel, a vat, a 

pail. 
Balk, a balk or beam. 
Balk, a balk in a ploughed field. 

ITALIAN. 

Balbettare, to stammer. 
Baldacchino, a canopy. 
Baldanza, boldness, courage. 
Baldo, bald or bare. 
Baldoria, bonfire, wildfire. 
Balena, a whale. 
Baleno, lightning. 
Balenare, to lighten. 
Balestro, a cross-bow. 
Balia, power, authority; a 
tutor. 



Balioso, powerful, stout. 
Balire, to govern, to nurse. 
Balla, a bale or pack. 
Ballare, to dance. 
Ballatojo, a gallery. 
Ballo, a ball or dance. 
Balocco, a simpleton, a booby. 
Balleo, a belt or girdle. 
Baluaro, a bulwark. 
Balza, a rock, a precipice. 
Balzana, balza, a flounce or 

furbelow. 
Balzano, white- spotted or 

speckled. 
Balzare, to bounce, to leap. 

ENGLISH. 

Balance, a poise, overplus of 
weight. 

Balani, shellfish adhering to 
others of a larger sort. 

Balcony, a projecting gallery 
in front of a house. 

Bald, bare-headed, stripped, 
exposed. 

Baldrick, a girdle ; the zodiac. 

Bale, a bundle or pack. 

Bale, calamity ; destruction. 

Bale, to throw water out. 

Balk, a large beam. 

Balk, a ridge of unploughed 
land ; a mere. 

Balk, to refuse ; to disappoint. 

Balkstaff, or Balstaff, a quar- 
ter-staff. 

Ball, a dancing or dance. 

Ballast, stuff to balance ships. 

Balliage, exportation duty paid 
by aliens. 

Balotade, a leap or bound. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 



195 



Baluster, a small column. 
Balm, the juice and tree so 
called. 

SPANISH. 

Bala, 2l bullet or ball. 

Baladro, a bellowing. 

Baladron, a boisterous fellow, 
a bully. 

Baladronear, to act boister- 
ously, to brag. 

Balagar, a hayrick . 

Balago, a whole reed of corn, 
also a sheaf. 

Balaguero, a heap of straw. 

Balance, a balance; also 
danger. 

Balancia, a water-melon. 

Balandra, a bilander. 

Balandran, a cassock. 

Balar, to bleat like sheep. 

Balazo, a bullet or shot. 

Balcon, a balcony. 

Balda, a thing of no value ; 
idleness. 

Baldado, a withered limb. 

Baldar, to maim, to deprive of 
a limb. 

Balde, a bucket. 

Baldeo, a sword, in cant lan- 
guage. 

Baldio, waste ; void ; idle ; a 
common. 

Baldon, abusive language ; re- 
proach. 

Baldonada, a courtezan. 

Baldonar, to scold ; to abuse ; 
to reproach. 

Baldres, dressed thin leather 
or skin. 



Balerina, valerian. 

Balhurria, the mob. 

Balica, a sort of boat. 

Balido, a bleating of sheep. 

Balija, a leathern bag, a port- 
manteau. 

Balisa, a beacon ; a landmark. 

Ballestas, a wallet. 

Ballico, darnel, tares. 

Balnadu, a gate. 

Balon, a great pack of goods. 

Balona, a band. 

Balones, a pair of breeches. 

Balsa, a pool or puddle. 

Balsar, to fill with water, to 
make a puddle. 

Balsopeto, a kind of large 
purse. 

Baltrueto, a rambling fellow, a 
vagabond. 

Baluarte, a bulwark. 

Balvasores, the ruling men in 
a nation. 

Balumba, a great heap of 

things. 
Balza, a kind of banner. 

FRENCH. 

Bal, a ball or dance. 

Balade, a ballad. 

Baladin, a dancer at shows, a 

buffoon. 
Balafre, a gash or slash. 
Balafrer, to gash, to slash. 
Balandran, a large coarse 

cloak. 
Balay, a broom ; a besom. 
Balayer, to sweep. 
Bale, a bullet, a ball ; chaff. 
Balire, buoy or mast. 



196 HISTORY OF TIIF, BRITONS. 

Baliveau, a pollard, a stander. Balagourka, a female buffoon 

Baliverner, to trifle. or jester. 

Ballon, a foot ball. Balakaew, to babble, to prattle. 

Balot, a bale or packet. Baldlayka, a kind of lute with 

Balote, a voting ball. two strings. 

Baloter, to toss ; to ballot ; to Balast, ballast. 

discuss. Balachon, a signal. 

Balourd, a loggerhead. Baldachin, a baldachin, a kind 

of canopy. 

RUSSIAN. Balsam, balsam. 

Balabcin, a lanner falcon, a Balouew, to waste, to spoil. 

kind of hawk. Baliassi, a prattling, a prating. 



For the sake of brevity, several words are omitted, 
which are borrowed into the modern languages in 
common from the Greek and the Latin. The fore- 
going specimen will suffice to show, that much re- 
mains to be done towards the successful investiga- 
tion of speech, and that important information may 
be obtained from the completion of the plan, of which 
this is a faint sketch. But some may urge, that the 
idea of what is here traced out would prove too 
much, that all languages are but one, and yet so 
different, as not to be understood in common. In 
answer to such objection, it may be inferred from 
the premises that have been laid down, that the 
primary characteristic of the identity of languages 
consists in having the same combination of radical 
words, and the same appropriation of their relative 
ideas, as an uniformity of construction depends 
mostly upon those two principles. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 197 



Chapter III. 



Progress of the Colonization of Europe, from the time of the 
dispersion at Babel to the commencement of History. 



For the period of nearly four hundred years subse- 
quent to the deluge, mankind increased and lived 
together, under the government and parental instruc- 
tion of the patriarch Noah, the preacher of righteous- 
ness, and his immediate descendants. The elevated 
and central country of Armenia, with some of the 
neighbouring regions, was ample enough to be so 
long the nursery of the world ; but at length it be- 
came necessary to devise regulations for separating, 
and to branch out into different nations. Accord- 
ingly in the days of Peleg, the earth was divided, 
when each family had its appropriate allotment. 
The department of the sons of Japhet, agreeably to 
the divine decree, lay westward ; and taking their 
course that way they thus progressively expanded, 
so as to embrace the shore of the Euxine ; thus some 
on the right hand entered Europe by the Palus 
Mseotis ; whilst others colonized Asia Minor, and 
afterwards crossed the Propontis on the left. They 
had made no considerable progress in those di- 
rections, before they were followed by wandering 
colonies of a people descended from a family whose 
conduct had been less regular. These weTe the sons 



198 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

of Chus, who, in contempt of the sacred compact, 
had ejected Ashur out of his territory ; had departed 
from the primitive religion, and for their combina- 
tion to establish themselves therein by the building 
of Babel, who had been scattered over the face of 
the earth, by the confusion of their language. By 
that signal dispersion, they were under the necessity 
of wandering about in search of settlements ; and, as 
it appears that they had made greater progress in 
sciences than probably any other people, they were 
consequently possessed of advantages which ren- 
dered them more powerful. The result of this was, 
an encroachment upon the territories of the original 
inhabitants, wherever they came in their way. These 
therefore were the first who brought war and dis- 
union, with their attendant evils, amongst the sons of 
men. 

For the space of about a thousand years more, 
which brings us down to the time of Solomon, and 
the commencement of the Grecian Annals, those two 
original nations ramified into different tribes, an- 
noyed one another, intermixed in some instances, 
subdued or were subdued, multiplied, and eventually, 
towards the close of that period, colonized the most 
western extremities of Europe. Such were the events, 
as facts and experience seem to indicate, that must 
have occurred in that period of obscurity, under the 
accumulated clouds of the mystic ages. All is dark 
like Erebus within, and the lightnings, occasionally 
playing on their outskirts, prove but intermittent 
flashes, throwing a momentary gleam on the monu- 
ments of history. The outline of the general effect. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 199 

arising from the events above hinted at, seems to be 
this. The Cymbrians,* first people, or the descen- 
dants of Japhet, had, towards the end of the period 
now under consideration, become widely diffused in 
small communities, over the most accessible parts of 
Europe. The later colonies, who, for the sake of 
discrimination, shall be called Scythians,t for some 
ages hereafter, spread in different tribes, from the 
western shores of the Euxine, down into Greece, and 
the contiguous islands, where they are mostly dis- 
tinguished under the appellation of Ionians,J who, 
in process of time, became blended with the original 
people. The northern communities of these people 

* This appellation is to be found progressively through Europe 
to Britain, and is used to this day by the Welsh ; it being the 
generic name by which they call themselves, and it literally im- 
plies thejirst race or the original people. 

+ Cythu, the root of which is Cwth, is, to eject, force out, 
expel, or disperse; and hence the appellations, Cythau, Cythi, 
Cythiaid, Cythion, Cythwys ; and with Ys prefixed, Ysgythau, 
Ysgythi, Ysgythiaid, Ysgythion, and Ysgythwys, all implying 
the expelled, or dispersed ones ; which, with the elision of the Y, 
would be written Scythi or Sgythi. 

X Those people who were so dispersed from Babel were, amongst 
other names, generally denominated, Cythites and Ionians ; the 
latter, because of their worshipping the dove, being one of the 
chief arkite emblems. It is remarkable, that the word pigeon is 
called Ysgythau in Welsh, the characteristic of which is deli- 
neated in the adage — " Nerlh Ysgythau yn ei hadanedd," the 
strength of the wood pigeon in her wings. It is possible, that 
those idolatrous people used the epithet Ion, primarily for the 
Deity, and transferred it to the dove, on its becoming an object 
of worship ; for the very same word Ion is to this day an epithet 
for God in the Welsh tongue ; though mostly used in poetry, and 
particularly in the metrical psalms. 



200 HISTORY OV THE BRITONS. 

found it expedient and political to become more 
united : They accordingly formed themselves into a 
massy column, and tracing the course of the river 
Danube, they penetrated the interior of the conti- 
nent, and eventually left their rear to be closed up 
by the original natives. It is to the arrival of the 
Scythians, or the dispersed ones, amongst the ori- 
ginal inhabitants that we are to attribute, in a great 
measure, if not altogether, that vast confusion which 
took place in the history of the ancient nations of 
Europe. At the same time it may be observed, that 
the principles which created the leading distinctions 
between those two classes of mankind were language 
and religion. The one preserved the original tongue, 
and with it, in a considerable degree, the pure re- 
ligion inculcated by Noah ; the other, on account of 
the innovations first introduced at Babel, with the 
change of religion lost, the established appropriation 
of speech. As the darkness that obscured the pre- 
ceding period was dissipated by the dawn of the 
historic times, we find the Cymbrians, and the Scy- 
thians, coming to view in different parts of Europe, 
and under a variety of appellations. The former, 
most generally, were called Cimmerians, Cimbrians, 
Gomerians, Galls, Galatians, Gauls, and Celts ; the 
others were the Getians, Goths, and several names 
less known ; of these the Helladians and lonians 
were branches. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 201 



Chapter IV. 

The identity of the Cymbrians, and other specified nations. 

The point now under consideration abounds with 
many difficulties, which cannot be thoroughly solved 
by relying upon what ancient authors have trans- 
mitted down relative to the subject ; for in several 
instances, from the scantiness of their information, 
they may have denominated one nation by the ap- 
propriate appellation of another ; or may have con- 
founded those together w T ho were peculiarly different 
in every respect. These errors they have actually 
committed, and very frequently too ; for the Cym- 
brians and Scythians are generally found blended 
together ; and not only they, but all the inhabitants 
of the northern regions, which included the vast 
country of the Sarmatians, were called Scythians.* 

In fact, the term Scythian was used in so vague 
a manner, that we may almost deem it to have the 
same indefinite meaning as barbarian, in many in- 
stances. In its strict sense it certainly should be 
appropriated to the various colonies of the Cuthites, 
Meropians, or Amonians, who were dispersed over 
all parts of the world. Thus we find a country called 

* Stmbo's Geoarr. Bouk ii. 



202 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

Scythia in Egypt ; another in Syria ; another in the 
northern parts of Asia Minor ; and a widely extended 
region of the same name, lying upon the ocean of 
India;* but in speaking of the Scythians of the 
North, we are to understand those who extended in 
that direction from the shores of the Euxine,f being 
a combination of a vast number of tribes of one com- 
mon origin, from whom were derived the different 
nations, who in after ages composed the mighty em- 
pire of the Goths. 

In consequence of this improper use of the appel- 
lation, many great events are recorded as forming a 
part of the history of the Scythians, which were in 
reality achieved partly by the people properly so 
called, partly by the Cymbrians, and the Sarmatians. 
And it is remarkable, that this obscurity began to 
be dispelled only so late as the time of Pliny ; for 
he notices, that the name of Scythian was every 
where changing to that of Sarmatians and Germans. J 
The fact is, that as the name was found to be used 
so indiscriminately, it was disused, as the different 
people to whom it had been applied became more 
known ; but hardly anything was known of the Sar- 
matians, besides the name, even to the end of the 
second century of our era. 

The identity of the proper Scythians and the Getes 
or Goths is a fact so satisfactorily established, that 
we shall suppose any discussion upon that head su- 
perfluous. It would therefore be foreign to the 



* Bryant's Mythology, vol. iii. p. 143. 

f Strabo's Geogr. book ii. 744. + Pliny, book iv. chap. 12. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 203 

intention of the present treatise to enter into the de- 
tail of Gothic history, otherwise than to discriminate 
between the various branches of that people, and 
those of the Cymbric race. To accomplish that, 
however, it will be of use to keep in view the follow- 
ing outline of the first progress of the Goths through 
Germany, until they reached the north-west shores of 
the Continent. 

It has been already observed, that the first influx 
into Europe, was that of the Cymbrians, under what- 
ever local appellations they might have been distin- 
guished; and that the proper Scythians followed, and 
made the countries round the northern shores of the 
Euxine their parental settlement for some ages. From 
this hive proceeded immense swarms in various direc- 
tions ; but the most formidable was that which began 
to move westward, under the name of Getes, the 
main body of which penetrated the heart of the 
country, between the Danube and the Borysthenes, 
and in its progress formed the great nation of the 
Basternians. This people, about a century before the 
Christian era, extended from south to north, over 
a country five hundred miles in length, from the 
Danube and the mountains of Carpathia to the Bal- 
tic ; and upwards of a hundred and fifty in breadth, 
from the river Vistula on the west to the Chronus 
and Borysthenes eastward,* and it may be in a man- 
ner considered as the nucleus, from which the diffe- 
rent German nations gradually expanded themselves, 
till in process of time they covered the west of Europe. 

* Strabo, book vii. p. 305. 



204 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

It is observable, that the Getes or Goths, by thus 
pressing westward in such a vast body, left so lew, 
if any, of their race in the primary seat of their em- 
pire, that the country was thereupon overflowed by 
the pressure of surrounding tribes, the Sarmatic and 
other nations. 

Of all the advances made by the original Scythians, 
into this part of the world, that was by far the most 
important. It was the only movement of sufficient 
extent to preserve their language predominant over 
that of the first inhabitants. The scattered colonies, 
who settled in Greece, Italy, and other countries 
lying upon the Mediterranean sea, were not of suffi- 
cient magnitude individually to produce the same 
effect, for they became mixed with the natives, by 
which means theirs formed the component parts of 
the languages of those countries only in an inferior 
degree. The characteristic features of it still re- 
mained Cymbric, as may be indubitably proved, by 
making a comparison of the various dialects. 

Let us now recur to the Cymbrians, of whose 
progression over Europe, nothing can be advanced 
to particularize the various events which must have 
occurred, so as to mark the periods of their different 
migrations ; for the whole was accomplished a con- 
siderable time previous to the commencement of 
credible history. All that remains to be done, there- 
fore, is, in the first place, to exhibit from the store of 
ancient authorities, the localities where their name 
was preserved ; and in the next we shall be able to 
adduce some conclusive proofs to discriminate them, 
by examining the languages of their posterity. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 205 

The first scene of Cymbric story presents the rear 
of the late colonies, who moved into Europe, sta- 
tioned upon the confines of Asia. They give it their 
name; it is called the Cimmerian Bosphorus, on 
which stood Cimmerium, their chief city. They 
were losing- ground here, owing to the pressure of 
the Scythians; but those who had advanced into 
the Tauric Chersonese, were able, from the security 
of their situation, to maintain it some time longer. 
However, about six hundred and forty years before 
Christ, they were no longer in a condition to with- 
stand the torrent. Being ejected thence they were 
dispersed, and one body of them made its way over 
the mountains of Caucasus, back into Asia, where 
they committed dreadful ravages.* 

Owing to the want of documents, we are not able 
to find another locality to which the Cymbrians gave 
their name, until we traverse the Continent to the 
western shores, where we find the Cimbric Cherso- 
nese, the Si-Cambri upon the Rhine, and the Cymry 
in Britain ; but from the notices we have of the 
people appearing under this name, there can be little 
doubt of their country's being named after them, 
throughout their progress, wherever situated. It 
was the general and common denomination of the 
whole collective body, in all times and places, being 

* Herodotus, book i. & \v, Diodor. Siculus, book ii. Ptolemy 
places the Chamarians and Comarians as two distinct nations, 
though originally the same, the one in Bactria along the south 
banks of the Oxus, and the latter a little further north in the 
province of Sogdiana. Book vi. c. 11 and 13. From the simi- 
larity of the names, we may suppose they were Cymbrians. 



206 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

the primeval name which carried the note of their 
descent from the origin of their line. They pos- 
sessed many other names descriptive of their locality 
and mode of living; but the most general of these 
were the epithets of Galli and Celtae, and when they 
overran Greece and Asia, they appear to have been 
equally denominated Galli, Celtae, Cimmerii or Cim- 
bri ;* they must have therefore carried these names 
into all the countries that they conquered. 

No satisfactory explanation has hitherto been given 
of the appellation of Cymbrian ; at least none to 
which we can by any means accede. Writers of 
weight and respectability, have generally agreed in 
deriving it from Gomer, the son of Japhet. In so 
doing, they have appealed to the Welsh, who call 
themselves Cymry, thereby allowing that they and 
the Cymbrians mentioned in history are one people. 
This proves that these writers considered the word 
as of the Welsh language, consequently the struc- 
ture of it should be agreeable to the genius of that 
tongue, which they have asserted to be the fact from 
its known principle of literal mutations. It is true 
that the people alluded to call themselves Cymry ; 
it is also true, there is such a system of mutation ; 



* The Celtae, who are called Cimbri, says Appian, encamped 
against Delphi, P. 1196. Amstel. — Speaking of the Teutones 
and Cimbri, Plutarch says, that the Cimmerii were first known 
to the Greeks in former ages. Vol. ii. p. 495. Bryan. — The 
Gauls, says Diodorus, who in ancient times overran all Asia, 
were denominated Cimmerii. P. 3.55. — The Galatse of the Greeks, 
says Josephus, were formerly called Gomarians. Antiq. Lib. i. 
c. 7. Whitaker's Genuine Historv of the Britons, p. 52. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 207 

but it is true too, that all the changes which occur, 
are governed by perfectly regular principles upon 
which the construction of the language depends, and 
that any change like that of Gymry into Cymru, is 
directly contrary to those principles, and there is not 
a single anomaly to be produced to sanction that in 
the present instance. But Cymry would regularly 
change into Gymry, and so do all words of the same 
initial change according as they are governed in 
construction ; and this probably may be the reason 
why Josephus has Gomarians instead of Comarians, 
as the name might have reached him under a pecu- 
liar mode of expression ; and he is the only author, 
we believe, who has it in this form.* In looking for 
a word in a language, it would be natural to enquire 
for the general acceptation of it, independently of 
its being used in an appropriated sense as the name 
of a people ; for all words in an original tongue have 
such general import. f The word Cymry will admit 
of a rational etymology, in the language of the people 
who call themselves so ; consequently, that is of 
sufficient weight to identify it as pertaining to that 
tongue, and therefore as being formed upon its prin- 

* Thus Cymry in the absolute is Cymbrians ; o Gymry, of 
Cymbrians; a Chymry, and Cymbrians. 

f In languages which, like the English, have largely borrowed 
from others, many names can have no signification, except being 
a mere absolute and appropriated term, such as are Britain, and 
Cymbria, in the same tongue ; but in that from which they are 
derived, they have general acceptations besides. So would an 
Englishman say, if a foreigner asked for the meaning of High- 
landers or Lowlanders ; because those appellations are formed 
from simple words in his own language. 



208 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

ciples. That signification then is literally those of 
the first race, and more indefinitely the first people. 
We will not pretend to assert, that this appella- 
tion was adopted by the Cymbrians, as considering 
themselves descended from the elder branch of the 
first family after the flood, or that it was assumed 
in consequence of their being the first colonies in 
Europe, it will readily admit of either interpre- 
tation. These premises duly considered, evince that 
it is quite a wrong supposition, that the Cym- 
brians should have been so called from Gomer; 
indeed it is questionable, whether any nation upon 
earth has adopted a patronymic name, which can 
be proved to be derived from its first individual 
founder. 

In addition to the general or patronymic name, 
as has been already observed, the different tribes or 
colonies had other appellations, descriptive of either 
their situation or their manner of life. These secon- 
dary names might, among some tribes, become so 
universal, that the other in process of time might 
appear obsolete. This seems to have been the case 
in Gaul properly so called ; where the two appella- 
tions of Gal and Celt prevailed ; both descriptive of 
the different habits of life prevalent amongst that 
people. The nation appears to have been divided 
into two classes ; the Galli being those who lived in 
the open plains and pursued agriculture ; and the 
Celts, those who dwelt in the coverts or woods and 
lived chiefly by hunting. The former class would 
possess more physical power than the other ; it would 
gain the ascendancy, and be of the most consequence 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 209 

in the eyes of other nations. Hence, the name of 
Gaul rose superior to that of Celt, and the latter 
gradually died away, and became an adjective indi- 
cating that part of Gaul in which the habits peculiar 
to it prevailed the most. Thus, the proper Gauls 
having so disused the patronymic appellative, it may 
be naturally concluded, that whatever irruption they 
might make into other countries, it was generally no- 
ticed by the historian under their popular name of 
Gaul, and never simply under the general and indi- 
genous appellation of Cymbrians. 

The irruptions made by the Cymbrians, mentioned 
by Roman writers, were from the north. This will 
lead us to enquire for the country able to pour out 
such vast bodies of men to harass the Romans and 
other nations. Surely nobody will say they issued 
from that insignificant spot alone called the Cimbric 
Chersonese ; even if it were an emigration of the 
whole people, which possibly, however, might have 
been the case, when that great movement took place, 
a little better than a century before Christ, owing to 
the pressure of the Gothic nations. For, in the time 
of Tacitus, their remains were reduced to a small 
tribe in the south-west corner of the country, near 
the mouth of the Elbe. It is to be observed, that 
prior to that period, the country of the northern Cym- 
brians had been disconnected by the progress of the 
Basternians towards the Baltic, and over into Scan- 
dinavia, so that the Cimbric Chersonese, and the 
coast down to the Elbe, being their western extre- 
mity, was become in a manner insulated from the 
main body of the nation which extended to the 

p 



210 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

Euxine eastward. About the same period, most 
probably, the confederacy of the Saxons, who were 
another ramification of the Basternians, or under 
whatever name the Goths might appear most formi- 
dable in their first progress, had also gained an as- 
cendancy in their neighbourhood on the south, and 
possessed the sea coast from the mouth of the same 
river to the borders of Belgia, 

But it is a curious circumstance, that the remains 
of the Cymbrians are to be found at the end of the 
eighteenth century in the island of Britain, and in 
Wenden, on the eastern side of the separation so 
made by the Gothic people in their progress into 
Scandinavia. This nation of the Wendi is now si- 
tuated in Upper Lusatia, extending to the north and 
east of Dresden. They are still a perfectly distinct 
people, but they diminish gradually in extent ; for 
they reached up to the shores of the Baltic about 
200 years ago ; and they are doubtless a remnant of 
the ancient tribes of iEstii, Gothini, and Venedi. 
They are detached from the main body of their ori- 
ginal race, the Poles, by a considerable extent of 
country ; therefore it is very remarkable that they 
should have so long preserved their Sclavonic dialect, 
insulated as they are in the midst of the Germans. 
These separated nations are as it were the detached 
links of that vast chain of Cymbrians who originally 
covered Europe ; broken, it is true, on the south side 
in very early times, but to the northward we find 
them more entire. 

What an immense scene is opened here to the 
observing- mind! It shows the Sarmatians and the 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 21 1 

Cymbrians to be one people. And it is a very ex- 
traordinary instance of the slow progress of this kind 
of investigation, that it commenced centuries ago, and 
yet a point of such importance has been left after all 
to be announced through a medium so obscure as 
that which now presents itself to the reader. 

This discovery will bring to our view the great 
portion of Europe still inhabited by the Cymbrians, 
under whatever particular appellation any people de- 
scended from that race may be now called : whether 
those who speak the Sclavonic, the Irish, or the 
Welsh dialect. It may serve as a ciue also to the 
historian, and lead him through many intricacies 
and difficulties in which he would otherwise be lost ; 
and such a fact will be with the philosopher the 
strongest evidence to induce him to withstand the 
current notion of the instability of speech. For no 
stronger elucidation can be brought, with respect to 
either of these points, than that nations, separated for 
the greater moiety of the age of the world, should 
respectively preserve the same language through all 
the vicissitudes of time. 

In order to attain a more correct idea of the origin 
of the different people inhabiting Europe, it will 
be of use to consider the following classification of 
the various dialects under their respective parental 
tongues, according to the identity of their grammar, 
structure, and nomenclature. — I. The Cymbrian". 
1. Sclavonic. 2. Polish. 3. Moscovite. 4. Nova- 
Zemblian. 5. Bohemian. 6. Dalmatian. 7. Croatic. 
8. Bulgarian. 9. Servian. 10. Carniolan. 11. Van- 
dalic. 12. Wendish. 13. Waldensic. H.Irish. 15. 



212 1IISTOKV Ob THE BRITONS. 

Mankish. 16. Cornish. 17. Armoric or Breton. 18. 
Welsh. — II. The Gothic. 1. Runic. 2. Teutonic. 
3. German. 4. Dutch. 5. Swedish. 6. Danish. 7. 
Norwegian. 8. Icelandic. 9. Anglo-Saxon. 10. Or- 
cadian. 11. English. — III. The Finnic. 1. Lappo- 
nic. 2. Livonian. 3. Courlandic. 4. Esthonian. 5. 
Lithuanian. 6. Pomeranian. 7. Werulian. 8. Prus- 
sian. 9. Hungarian. — IV. The Mixed. 1. Greek. 
2. Modern Greek. 3. Latin. 4. Italian. 5. Spanish 
6. French. 7. Portuguese. 8. Walachian. 9. Wal- 
loon. — V. Iberian. Cantabric. By a close exa- 
mination of the different dialects of the Cymbric 
tongue, we discover some circumstances deserving 
of particular attention, as they may lead to very im- 
portant conclusions. 

1. Between some of the dialects, there exists a 
certain characteristic analogy, creating an uniform 
difference from some others. 2. The Welsh, Cor- 
nish and Breton, have an uniform agreement with 
one another, in grammar, structure, and nomencla- 
ture. 3. The various dialects of the Sclavonic have 
the same agreement with each other. 4. The Wal- 
densic, Irish, Erse and Mankish, have also their 
peculiar uniformity of character. 5. The Welsh and 
Sclavonic have more of a common characteristic 
semblance with each other than with the Irish, and 
those classed with it. 6. Of the Welsh, Cornish and 
Breton, the two latter are most alike. 7. Of all the 
dialectical differences of the Welsh, those that occur 
in the southern parts of Wales agree most with the 
Cornish. 8. The Cornish approaches nearer than 
either of those classed with it to the Irish. 9. The 
Irish has the greatest affinity of structure to the Latin 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 213 

of any. 10. The Breton has more words than the 
Welsh in common with the Saxon. 11. The lan- 
guage of the ancient Belgae of Gaul and of Britain, 
had more than the Welsh of the Irish structure. 

From the preceding analysis of the Cymbric tongue, 
a general deduction may be made to the following 
effect : — That the Sclavonic dialects were spoken by 
the descendants of the first colonists, who migrated 
northward from Armenia, and were known under the 
name of Sarmatians. The proper Cymbric belonged 
to those who moved in a westerly direction over 
Europe, of which the Welsh, Cornish and Breton, 
are the most immediate remains ; and the Irish, with 
its branches, belonged to a people who continued for 
a greater length of time on the Continent in the 
neighbourhood of that second influx of men from 
the Scythic dispersion ; and the Irish are more imme- 
diately a part of the same nation, which went under 
the name of Ligurians, in Cisalpine Gaul, proper 
Belgians, and the Belgians, or Loegrians of Britain. 



Chapter V. 

The first settlement of Britain, and by what race of men. 

In the preceding chapter we have sketched out the 
general progress of the primary colonies of men over 
Europe ; and the relative situations of the diffe- 
rent parent nations, as they appeared when history 
was introduced among them. Let us now direct our 
views to that particular epoch, when the fair and 
towering aspect of Britain welcomed its first visitors. 



214 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS, 

There are many reasons to induce us to support the 
position, that the west of Europe was, in some de- 
gree, inhabited by adventurous tribes of men, a few 
ages, or about two hundred years, subsequent to 
their general dispersion from the region in which 
they had been collectively recruited after the deluge. 
The settlement of different countries did not take 
place, as some have illustrated it, upon the uniform 
principle of the circular expansion of the wave ; on 
the contrary, all that can be gathered of the nature 
of the migrations of mankind shews, that it depended 
immediately upon the circumstances arising from 
the nature of the situation, and the facility of travel- 
ling; thus, the course of a great river claimed the 
highest consideration in every point of view.* Judg- 
ing generally from the foregoing premises, may we 
conclude, that the shores of the continent, opposite 
to Britain, were some of the first regions westward 
that were explored by the active spirit of man, and 
consequently the island itself, very soon after, must 
have excited his curiosity. 

It has been already explained, that the Cymbrians 



* For the elucidation of this matter, we have only to turn our 
view to America. There we find, that notwithstanding the pau- 
city of inhabitants in the United States, new settlements are 
made, detached by immense wilds, and this too at the risk of 
being molested by other people, the original natives of the coun- 
try, jealous of every encroachment upon their territory. This 
may be still more remarkably illustrated by the roving disposition 
of the back-settlers ; amongst whom it is well known, that fre- 
quently a single family, with its live and dead stock, will quit 
the old habitation ; having the accommodation of a covered wag- 
gon, and thus traverse some hundreds of miles, in search of a more 
inviting abode. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 215 

were the people who primarily spread over Europe, 
under every diversity of appellation they might 
have adopted ; whether Gauls, Celts, Belgians.* 
Picts, Gwyddels, Scots, Loegrians, or Gwentians.f 
After the first influx of the Cymbrians into Britain, 
others successively followed to participate in its 
bounty. Seven of these migrations are recorded to 
have taken place during that period over which time 
has thrown a veil. For the memorial of them, we are 
indebted to the fidelity of the system of the bardic 
tradition, but as these colonies are ambiguously de- 
nominated by figurative appellations, nothing further 
can be made out than simply, that so many events 
did occur. 



Chapter VI. 

Of the names of Britain, and of its divisions. 

The Historical Triads attribute to Prydain, the son 
of Aedd Mawr, the honour of being the leader of 
one of those subsequent colonies who arrived in Bri- 
tain, and of giving it his own name, instead of that 
of Honey Island, which it bore till then, from the 
time of its first settlement ; % for the Cymbrians gave 

* The Cymbrians of the north, or the Sarmatians, were also 
called Belgians or Belcce, as Mela writes the name. 

t Variously written, Veneti, Venedi, Wendi, Ventians, 

X There is a Triad recording the three most ancient names of 

Britain ; and as it is a curious fragment of history, it is given 

here at length: — Tri henw yr Ynys Hon; y cyntav, cyn eichy- 

fanneddu y gelwid hi Clds Merddin (Meitin) ; wedi ei chyvan- 



216 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

to their new country several names characteristic of 
some qualities which appeared beautiful, or pleasing 
to the mind ; but some of them, perhaps, ought to 
be considered more as poetical epithets, than as fixed 
appellations. Such, we may conclude, were Ynys 
y cedeirn, or the island of the mighty ones ; and Yr 
Ynys Wen, or Y Wen Ynys, the White Island, other- 
wise the fair Island, according to the derivative im- 
port of the word. 

However, the name which has had pre-eminence 
amongst the natives, as well as among foreign nations 
in all ages, is Ynys Prydain, or the Beautiful Island. 
There is nothing in this appellation that favours 
the probability or improbability of its being so called 
by the person before mentioned ; for the epithet, 
Prydain, may be applied to a man, as well as to a 
place. If it were bestowed by him, it lessened, in 
some degree, the vanity of possessing so flattering 
a title himself. There have been many extraordi- 
nary guesses as to the etymology of Britain. But 
it is a very singular occurrence, that not one has 
laid aside this humour for guessing, and taken the 
trouble of enquiring whether the name were used in 
the language of the original natives ; and it is fully 
as unaccountable, that not a single individual 
amongst the Welsh themselves, till very lately, has 

neddu y gelwid hi y Fel Ynys ; a gwedi ei goresgyn o Brydain 
mab Aedd Mawr ydodes ami Ynys Prydain. The three names 
of this island : the first before it was inhabited, it was called 
the water-guarded green spot ; after it was inhabited, it was 
called the Honey Island ; and after its subjection to Prydain the 
son of Aedd Mawr, he gave it the name of the Isle of Prydain. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 217 

thought of making it known to the world, though it 
is one of their most common words as to both com- 
position and import.* The Welsh, then, having such 
a word derived from a simple root very familiar, 
other nations can only have it as an absolute name, 
which they have borrowed, and which to them is 
destitute of all signification. We must therefore 
recur to that language in which it originates, in 
order to be informed of its meaning. Prydain is 
an epithet, the same as Prydus, denoting a plenitude 
of sightliness, presence or beauty. It is derived 
from Pryd, the presence, aspect or sight, which is 
also applied to time, as the present : and the adjec- 
tive termination, Ain, implies teeming with, being 
most generally used in the names of places. 

In order to illustrate this subject still more, it is 
proper to remark, that agreeably to a regular system 
of literal mutation peculiar to the Welsh language, 
the initial of Prydain has three different inflections, 
as may be thus exemplified : Brenin Prydain, the 
king of Britain ; eis o Prydain, I went from Bri- 
tain ; ym Mhrydain, in Britain ; Ywerddon a Phry- 
dain, Ireland and Britain. To those who are unac- 
quainted with the principles of this mutation of 
letters, it would be augmenting the difficulties, 
perhaps, to enter into anything short of a complete 
explanation of it ; but as that would be foreign 

* The true meaning of Britain is given in vol. ii. p. 42, of 
Poems Lyric and Pastoral, by Edward Williams, London, 1794, 
and in page 21 of the Introduction to the Heroic Elegies of 
Llywarch Hen, by William Owen, (Dr. Owen Pughe,) London, 
1794. 



218 HISTORY OF THE BRITOXS. 

to the intention of the plan sketched out, we must 
proceed, observing therefore, that what is here 
touched upon will serve as an intimation of the dif- 
ferent appearances of the same word, and of those 
different appearances not occurring without cause. 

We will next proceed to elucidate the names of 
the three grand divisions, into which the island was 
politically and naturally divided. These are Lloegyr, 
Alban, and Cymru, or England, Scotland, and Wales. 
The first was denominated Lloegyr, on account of 
its being the seat of the Lloegrwys, or Loegrians, 
which can be no other than the Belgae, a colony 
that came over long after the original settlement 
of the island ; that is, about three hundred years 
before our era. As this appellation belonged ex- 
clusively to them, it must have been extended 
gradually, as the events of conquest took place on 
the bordering tribes. But it was owing to much 
later contingencies, that it was applied in the latitude 
in which it is now taken. In consequence of the 
great change which occurred from the sway of the 
Romans, but not before the close of that period, the 
name included all the country to the Humber north- 
ward, and to the Severn on the west ; and it was not 
applied as England is under its present acceptation, 
until the Saxons were concentrated under one mo- 
narchy. Though the name is used for the country 
subject to that dominion, yet it is never applied to 
the Saxons themselves, or to any people save the 
Belgae ; for the different nations which came to the 
island afterwards, beginning with the Romans, and 
so onward, were denominated by their proper appel- 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 219 

lations of Rhomani, or Rhuveiniaid, Eingyl, Saeson 
Llychlynigion, and Nortmyn. In giving the defini- 
tion of this name, there may be a doubt whether we 
should not consider it primarily as the family title of 
the people, and not applicable to the country, except 
in its derived sense : for it may be taken in either way. 
Be it so or otherwise, the general meaning is, — that 
aboundeth with light or fairness of aspect. 

The northern part of the island was generally 
called Alban, but very frequently it was also denomi- 
nated Prydyn ; and sometimes the appellation of a 
particular nation was applied to the whole. The 
former name implies literally the high region ; or it 
may be rendered the upper region. There may be a 
doubt whether, agreeably to the first idea, it was so 
called from its high mountains, or whether the epi- 
thet might have been bestowed figuratively, in al- 
lusion to its upper or northern position. Various 
places are found to have possessed the same deno- 
mination, and to have answered to it in description. 
The whole of Britain had it in the earlier periods of 
its discovery, from the conspicuous appearances of the 
towering cliffs on the coast nearest to the continent ; 
and it was converted into Albion by the Greek wri- 
ters. The other name of Prydyn, having a mascu- 
line form, is of the same meaning as Prydain, which 
is feminine ; there being no difference but in the gen- 
der, which is discriminated by the terminations. 

We have already explained Cymru, and shewn it 
to have been the general or patronymic name of the 
whole race, consequently it could not have been 
confined to the present Wales, until the different 



220 HISTORY OF THE BRITOiYS. 

branches of the same people ceased to be recognized 
elsewhere. The universality of the appellation, 
accounts for its not coming under the observation of 
the Romans, as given to that particular country. 
Their enquiry would lead to a discovery of the 
names of the particular tribes, amongst whom the 
country was divided ; and the result of a similar 
research at the present day would be to find the 
same appellation still exactly preserved. 

The names of the subdivisions, or the different 
petty states, into which the island was parcelled out 
come next under our notice. These are very nume- 
rous, and it may be remarked, that they are generally 
of greater antiquity than those of the first class are 
with respect to locality. This part of our discussion is 
attended witli considerable difficulties, as the names 
are not preserved in the tongue which imposed 
them, and are therefore to be found only in the writings 
of foreign authors, necessarily disguised and accom- 
modated to the peculiar characters of the languages 
used by them. For their being handed down to us, 
we are chiefly indebted to the Romans ; and it is but 
justice to remark, that they excelled all other people 
in the world, ancient and modern, in correctly ascer- 
taining the sound of strange words. Whatever aber- 
rations they made in them were agreeable to a regu- 
lar system. In this they have not been imitated by 
other nations, certainly not by the English ; for the 
names on the best English maps of Wales are, in 
numerous instances, much more disfigured, than in 
such as have been handed down to us from those 
more ancient times. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITON'S. 22 



Chapter VII. 

Of the ancient divisions of Britain, and the names of the 
various tribes, by which it was inhabited. 

The three grand divisions of Lloegyr, Cymru, and 
Alban, or England, Wales, and Scotland, properly 
so called, did not exist before the Roman conquest, 
for to that event their origin must be attributed, 
though it was not fully developed before the Saxon 
period. Originally each division was contented to 
have the natural barriers of the country, the courses 
of rivers, mountains, and forests for the limits of its 
territory ; and perhaps in no instance did several of 
the British tribes unite under one government for 
any considerable length of time, or bear a common 
name. To each district its inhabitants gave some 
appellation that was characteristic of its appearance ; 
however, influenced by the prevailing partiality to a 
native spot, it generally conveyed an idea of what 
was fair, pleasant, or beautiful. 

The whole number of tribes, or of independent 
states was about forty-five, at the coming of the 
Romans into the island. Their names, a little dis- 
guised by a foreign orthography, were the follow- 
ing : — Cantii, Regni, Bibroces , Attrebates, Segontiaci, 
Belgae, Durotriges, Haedui, Carnabii, Damnonii, 
Silures, Ordovices, Dimetae, Trinobantes, Iceni, 
Coritani, Cassii, Dobuni, Huiccii, Ancalites, Car- 
nabii, Sistuntii, Volantii, Brigantes, Ottadini, Ga- 
deni, Selgovae, Novantes, Damnii, Horrestii, Vectu- 



222 HISTORY OF the britoxs. 

rones, Taixali,Vacomagi, Albani, Attacotti, Caledoni, 
Cantae, Logi, Camabii, Catini, Mertae, Carnonacae, 
Cerones, Creones, Epidii. 

The situation of the different tribes* and the 
meaning of their names, 

I. The CANTri inhabited the present county of 
Kent, being bounded by the Thames on the north, 
and the Lemanus or Rother on the west; and their 
capital town was Durovernum, Cantiopolis or Can- 
terbury. 

They called their country Caint, an aggregate 
noun from Cain, fair, open, being descriptive of 
its general appearance consisting of fair or open 
valleys and slopes, and the appellation is common 
in Wales for regions that are like it ; and this 
derivation is corroborated by the Welsh calling 
Canterbury the city of Caint. They might have 
called themselves Ceinti, Ceintiaid, Ceintion, Cein- 
twyr, Ceintwys, Ceintwyson, and Gwyr Caint ; or 
they could change Caint into Ceintwg, and Ceintog, 
and name themselves Ceintygi, Ceintygiaid, Ceinty- 
gion, Ceintygwyr, Ceintygwys, Gwyr Ceintwg, or 
Ceintogi, Ceintogiaid, Ceintogion, and Ceintogwys ; 
So flexible is the British language in its nature, and 
at the same time so regular in its modifications. 

II. The Regni resided in Surry and Sussex ; and 
Regnum, Regentium, or Chichester appears from its 
name to have been their metropolis. This people 
inhabited a region very similar in appearance to 

* This rests mostly upon the accuracy of Mr. Whitaker. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 223 

Kent, and the name was the same with the discrimi- 
native prefix Rhy, implying the foremost or further 
Cantii ; for thus would the name be formed, Rhy- 
geinni, Rhygeinniaid, Rhygeinnion, Rhygeinnwys, 
and Gwyr Rhygaint ; or without the mutation of 
the last letter, Rhygainti, Rhygeintiaid, Rhygeintion, 
Rhygeintwys, and Gwyr Rhygaint; also thus from 
Rhygeinnwg, Rhygeinnog, Rhygeintwg, and Rhy- 
geintog, Rhygeinnygi, Rhygeinnygiaid, Rhygeinny- 
gion, Rhygeinnygwys, Gwyr Rhygeinnwg, Rhygein- 
tygi, Rhygeintygiaid, Rhygeintygion, Rhygeinty- 
gwys, Gwyr Rhygeintwg, or Rhygeintogi, Rhygeinto- 
giaid, Rhygeintogion, Rhygeintogwys, and Gwyr 
Rhygeintog. 

III. The Bjbroces, or Rhemi, occupied the south- 
eastern parts of Berkshire, from the Lodden on the 
west, to the Thames on the east, and had Bibroicum, 
Bibracte or Bray, for their capital. 

This people inhabited a district covered with tufts 
of wood, brakes or thickets, as the name would imply, 
if derived from Pau a region, or country, and Brog 
a brake or thicket, that is, Pau Brog, thicket country ; 
or compounded — Peuvrog, braky region ; YBeuvrog, 
the braky region ; thence the inhabitants would be 
denominated Y BEUVROGWYs,Peuvrogi, Peuvrogiaid, 
Peuvrogwyr, and Gwyr Pau Brog. I am the more 
inclined to suppose that the above derivation is right, 
as the other name of Rhemi implies nearly the same 
thing. 

IV. The Attrebates occupied nearly all the 
western parts of Berkshire, were bounded by the 
Lodden on the south-east, the curving bank of the 



224 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

Thames on the north-west and west, and the hills of 
East-Ilsley, Lambourne, and Ashbury, on the south ; 
and had Calliva or Wallingford for their chief city. 
— Their name is thus to be accounted for : Attrev 
and Attrevad describe a habitation bordering upon 
any range of hills, woods, or a river, which was the 
case with respect to this people. Their country being 
so denominated, they would call themselves, At- 
TREVATr, Attreviaid, Attrevigion, Attrevwys, Attreva- 
tiaid, Attrevatwys, Attreviadon, and Gwyr Attrev. 

V. The Segontiaci inhabited a little of the south 
of Berkshire, west of the Lodden, about the banks of 
the Kennet, and the adjoining north of Hampshire ; 
and their principal town was Vindomis, Vindonum, 
or Silchester. It seems that their country was called 
Isgwent, Isgwentwg, or Isgwentog, that is the 
lower Venta, the G being not mutable in this form 
of construction, therefore the Romans preserved it in 
this name ; for had the ts [lower] been not prefixed, 
but separately pronounced, Is wentogi, then we should 
have had the name written Seventiaci. The people 
called themselves Isgwenti, Isgwentiaid, Isgwention, 
Isgwent wyr, Isgwentwys, Gwyr Isgwent, Gwyr 
Gwent isav, or Gwyr y went isav, and Isgwentygi, 
Isgwentygiaid, Isgwentygion, Isgwentygwys, Isg- 
wentwyson, Isgwennwyson, Gwyr Isgwentwg, and 
also Isgwentogi, Isgwentogiaid, Isgwentogion, Isg- 
wentogwys,Isgwennwys, Isgwennwyson, Isgwennwy- 
siad, and Isgwentiogt, all implying the Lower 
Gwentians distinguished from the proper country 
of Gwent, which was occupied by the Belgae. 

VI. The BelgjE had all Hampshire, except the 



HISTORY QF THE BRITONS, 225 

northern part, occupied by the Segontiaci, and all 
Wiltshire, save a small district on the north-west ; 
and had Venta Belgarum, Caer Went, or Winchester 
for their capital ; and their country was the proper 
Gwent, or Y Went, a name descriptive of the open 
downs with which it abounded. 

This people having recently come over to Britain, 
and differing considerably in their manners and 
language from the other tribes, the Romans dis- 
tinguished all the inhabitants of the Island under 
the two divisions of Aborigines and Belgse. The 
former had migrated from the continent at various 
times in the first ages of the population of Europe, 
and were the unmixed Cymbrians. The Belgse began 
to come over nearly three centuries before Caesar's 
invasion, and were likewise of Cymbric origin, but 
had necessarily been neighbours for a long time to 
the Teutonic nations ; and must have consequently 
undergone a considerable degree of intermixture ; as 
was the case in similar instances with the continen- 
tal Cymbrians in general, and the effect is singularly 
evident amongst the Celtic people of Greece and 
Italy in particular. 

The Belgae were driven over into Britain, probably 
by the pressure of the German tribes on their 
borders. Their progress in the island may be 
plainly marked out along its southern coast to 
Devonshire, and thence onward over into Ireland. 
That island was then but thinly peopled, and its 
few inhabitants must have come from different points 
of the opposite coast of Britain, in consequence of 

Q 



226 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

too great a population ; and this fact is exactly 
corroborated by historical documents, as well as by 
many ancient traditions in Wales. 

The Belgae had not long been settled in Ireland 
before they became the most powerful people there, 
from the greater union and energy of their political 
economy ; and the original tribes, who lived in the 
woods by hunting, and by tending their flocks, and 
who were generally called Gwddyl, Ysgoti, Ysgo- 
tiaid, and Ysgodogion, or woodlanders, became in a 
great measure absorbed in the mass of new comers. 
The original characteristic of the dialect, till then 
purely Celtic, gave way to that of the Belgic ; and 
under this form the colonies who came over to 
Scotland planted it there, where it still remains, 
whilst the original language of that country has been 
gradually lost, partly in the Irish-Belgic, but more 
extensively in the Saxon dialect. 

A regular investigation and comparison of different 
languages strongly confirm what is above adduced ; 
and it is very observable that all the names of men 
and places among the Belgic Britons, which are 
preserved, are according to the Irish idiom and 
principles of orthography, and not according to 
those of the Welsh. For example, in some manu- 
scripts the Isle of Sheppey is called Ennis Vliocht, 
or the Isle of Milk, which in Welsh would be written 
Ynys Vlith ; Vortigern would be so written in Irish, 
or with letters which would give the same sound, 
but the name in Welsh is Gortheryn, and all the 
old manuscripts have it so ; Vortimer is also written 



HISTORY OF THE BRITOXS. 227 

Gorthevyr in the Welsh ; and other instances might 
be produced in support of this point. Further, 
the Irish discovers a nearer affinity than the Welsh 
to the Latin, although the Romans were settled in 
Britain for so long a period. The Latin and Irish 
have also several letters in common, which I deem of 
Teutonic origin, differing from the corresponding 
sounds in the Welsh : the chief of which are s, v, and 
ct in the former languages, for h, g, and th in the 
latter, as might be proved by many hundred words. 
The meaning of the word Belgse seems to be 
preserved in the Welsh : Belg implies that which 
breaks out, makes irruption, or ravages ; so BeJgau, 
Belgiaid, Belgwyr, Belgwys, and Gwyr Belg, might 
be rendered irruptors, depredators, ravagers, or 
warriors. 

VII. The Durotriges, or Morini, lived in Dor- 
setshire, and had Durinum, Durnovaria,or Dorchester 
for their capital. 

Both these names are purely Welsh, and nearly of 
the same meaning, as the former implies dwellers on 
the water, that is, Dwrodigwys, from dwr, water, and 
trigo, to abide or dwell ; and the other, Morini, 
the maritime people ; from Aforin, maritime, and 
the common plural termination for people ; or the 
name might be also formed Moriniaid, Morinion, 
Morinwyr, Morinwys, Merini, Meriniaid, Merinion, 
Merinwys. They might be likewise called Dwrini, 
Dwriniaid, Dwrinion, Dwrinwys ; and their capital 
might be named Caer Dwrin, Din Dwrin, and 
Dwrin-evwr, which would account for the two appel- 
lations of Durinum and Durnovaria. 



228 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

The Morini are mentioned in a poem by Taliesin, 
called his Primary Gratulation, in these words: 

Dytoent guarthvor 
Guytveirch dyarvor 
Einyyl yn cynghor : 
Guelator amy Hon 
Guyniaeth ar Saeson 
O ruyvanusion 
Bytaudpen Seiron, 
Rhag Fichti leuon, 
Morini Brython. 

" Upon the sea there would be coming the wooden wafters 
full of the tumult of the Angles in counsel: signs are seen, 
boding the rage of the Saxons. Of those that are wont to lead, 
let Seiron be the head, against the Lion Picts, of the Morini 
Britons." 

VIII. The Hjedui had all Somersetshire to the 
estuary Uxella, Bridgevvater Bay, or the river Ivel 
on the south ; the south-west of Gloucestershire, to 
the hills of Wotton-under-Edge ; and the north- 
west of Wiltshire to the Avon and Creeklade. 

The Welsh call the country of this people now 
Gwlad yr Hav, or the country of Summer ; and 
Havwys, Heiviaid, Heivion, and Gwyr Gwlad yr 
Haf, would be the name of the people, which is pro- 
bably the original of Haedui ; unless their country 
was noted for its honey and mead, for then the 
people might be named Heidwys, Heidiaid, Heid- 
wyon, and Heidionwys, from Haid, a swarm, and 
generally appropriated to a swarm of bees. 

IX. The Damnonii had the small portion of So- 
mersetshire, which is east of the Thone, and the parts 
lying south and west of the Ivel and Bridgewater Bay, 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 229 

all Devonshire, and the north part of Cornwall to the 
Tamar river.* 

The original name of Devonshire is Dyvnaint, and 
is very frequently mentioned in the old writings 
of Wales ; it implies the deeps or hollows, which is 
very descriptive of the country. The people would 
then be called Dyvneinni, Dyvneinniaid, Dyvnein- 
nion, Dyvneinnwyr, Dyvneinnwys, or Dyvneinti, 
Dyvneintiaid, Dyfneintion, Dyfneintwys, and Gwyr 
Dyvnaint; or they might be called Dyfni, Dyvniaid, 
Dyvnoni, Dyfnonwyr, Dy vnonwys, and Dyvnwys, all 
implying the inhabitants of the glens, or deep valleys, 
which last class of words is the origin of the appel- 
lation of Damnii, synonymous with Damnonii. 

X. The Carnabii possessed all Cornwall, except a 
small part to the north of the Tamar. 

The name for Cornwall is Cernyw, and it implies 
a projecting ridge or slope, and also a promontory, 
and in the last sense it became the name of this 
country. The inhabitants were called Cernywi, 
Cernywiaid, Cernywion, Cernywir, Cernywwys, 



* Mr. Whitaker attempts to trace out the situation of a people 
called the Cimbri, in that part of Somersetshire lying south of 
the Ivel and Bridgewater Bay, and along the north of Cornwall 
(omitting, perhaps from oversight, the intermediate north coast 
of Devonshire) as far as the river Cambala, Camel, or Padstow 
Harbour. From the fact that the name given to this tribe is the 
patronymic common to all the Britons, and from the confusion 
respecting this district in the old geographers, I am induced 
to consider that there were no people here who went peculiarly 
under the appellation of Cimbri, but that the Damnonii and 
Carnabii bordered upon each other about the place traced out 
above. 



230 HISTORY or THE BRITONS, 

Cerny wwyson, and Gwyr Cerny w, or the men of the 
promontory. 

The above ten nations inhabited the Britannia 
Prima of the Romans, being that part of the island 
lying south of the Thames and the Severn, and a 
line drawn from Creeklade on the former to Berkeley 
on the latter. 

I. The Siluues inhabited the counties of Hereford, 
Radnor, Monmouth, and Glamorgan,* to the river 
Neath on the west, and the small portion of Glou- 
cestershire, which is to the west of the Severn, 
having Venta Silurum, or Caer Went, in Monmouth- 
shire, for their metropolis. 

The Britons called the country of this people by 
two names, which are as nearly as can be synonymous, 
Esyllwg and Gwent. For Esyllwg, Esyllyr, Bro 
Esyllt, Gwlad Esyllt, Syllwg, and Syllyr, were indis- 
criminately used, all implying an open country of 
downs, abounding with prospects. But the appella- 
tions of Gwent, Gwent wg, Bro Went, and Gwlad Went, 
were the most generally used, or at least have been 
so lately. The names of the people were Gwyr 
Esyllwg, Gwyr Esyllyr, Gwyr Bro Esyllt, Gwyr 
Gwlad Esyllt, Gwyr Syllwg, Gwyr Syllyr, Esyllygi, 
Esyllygiaid, Esyllygion, Esyllygwyr, Esyllygwys, 
Esyllygwyson, Esyllyri, Esyllyriaid, Esyllyrion, Esyl- 
lyrwyr, Esyllyrwys, Esyllyrwyson, Syllygi, Sylly- 
giaid,Syllygion,Syllygwyr, Syllygwys, Syllygwyson, 
Syllyri, Syllyriaid, Syllyrion, Syllyrwyr, Syllyrwys, 
and Syllyrwyson ; or Gwenti Gwentiaid, Gwention, 

* Omitted by Mr. Whitaker. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 231 

Gwentwyr, Gwentwys, Gwentwyson, Gwyr Bro 
Went, Gwyr Gwlad Went, Gwenhi, Gwenhiaid, 
Gwenhion, Gwenhwyr, Gwenhwys, and Gwenhwy- 
son. Their language, or the Gwenhwyseg, was one 
of the three principal dialects of Wales. In it are 
written many of our old books, some of which are 
very valuable. 

II. The Dimet^: inhabited Pembrokeshire, Penvro 
Dyfed, or the proper Dimetia; Gower, now a part 
of Glamorganshire ; and the whole of the counties 
of Caermarthen, Brecon, and Cardigan; and Mari- 
dunum, Caervyrddin, or Caermarthen, was their 
capital. 

The Welsh name for the country comprehended 
in the above mentioned limits is Deheubarth, or 
Southernland ; and Dyfed or Dimetia is used in a 
more contracted sense, being generally applied to 
Pembrokeshire alone. The language of this district, 
or the Deheubartheg, is one of the three chief dialects 
of the Welsh. 

The name of Dyved, implies a region abounding 
with waters or streams ; and it is very applicable, as 
the country extends into the seas, and Milford Haven 
likewise divides it nearly through the middle. The 
people may be called Dyvedi, Dyvediaid, Dyvedion, 
Dyved wyr, Dyvedwys, Dyved wyson, and Gwyr, 
Dyved ; or, by inflection, Dyveidi, Dyveidiaid, Dy vei- 
dion, Dyveidwyr, Dyveidwys, and Dyveid wyson. 

III. The Ordovices was the name by which the in- 
habitants of all the present North Wales was known to 
the Romans ; and also as much of Shropshire as lay 
on that side of the Severn : and as a part of Cheshire 



232 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

is said to have once belonged to them, it is probable 
that the Dee was their original boundary on that 
side. 

I apprehend that the Ordovices were so denomi- 
nated in allusion to their mountainous situation ; as 
from their primitive words, Or and Ar, are formed 
Gor, Gorth, Gwar Gwarth, Gortho, Gwarthav, Gor- 
thav, Gorthevig, Gorthevin, Gwarthevig, and Gwar- 
thevin ; and from Gor and Tav, are derived Gordevig 
and Gordevin ; and from Ar and Tav come Ardevig, 
Ardevog, and Ardevin ; and all these words are 
descriptive of a high or upper region. Out of these 
I select Gordevig as most analogous to Ordovic, for 
its initial is dropped under several forms of construc- 
tion ; as, Bro Ordevig, a high extending country ; and 
thence the people would be called Gordevigi, Gorde- 
vigiaid, Gordevigion, Gordevigwyr, Gordevigwys, 
Gordevigwyson, and Gwyr Bro Ordevig, the men of 
the higher country, or Highlanders. The following 
phrase will shew the name without the initial : 

Dyma Ordevigwys. 
Here are Ordovices. 

The Ordovices was a term for the mountaineers of 
North Wales in general, and not for any particular 
tribe ; most certainly the inhabitants were, at least, 
as much divided into small communities at the time 
when the Romans came amongst them, as they were 
in succeeding periods, when the names of several 
tribes appear in history. The two most comprehen- 
sive divisions of this country were Gwynedd and 
Powys, and each of these was parcelled out into 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 233 

several petty states, acknowledging in latter ages, 
however, the princes of Gwynedd and Powys as their 
respective lords paramount. 

The people of Gwyneda were called Gwyndyd, 
Gwyndodwyr, Gwyndodwys, Gwyneddiaid, Gwyned- 
dion, Gwynedd wyr, Gwynedd wys, Gwyneddigiaid, 
Gwyneddigion, and Gwyr Gwynedd : those of Powys 
were denominated, Powysi, Powysiaid, Powyson, 
Powysion Powyswyr, and Gwyr Powys. 

The Gwyndodeg, the language of the Venedoci, 
or the men of Gwynedd, was the third prevailing 
dialect amongst the Welsh. 

The three nations above specified were comprised 
in the Britannia Secunda of the Romans. 

I. The Trinovantes resided in the counties of 
Middlesex and Essex ; and Londinium, Tre Lundain, 
Caer Lundain, Lundain, Caer Ludd, or London, was 
their chief town. 

They were so denominated from their situation on 
the great expanse of water, or lake, formed by the 
Thames, as were the Novantes in Scotland, from 
their dwelling in the peninsula and headland of Gal- 
loway. With respect to the etymology of the word, 
I am doubtful whether the prefix should be Tre, a 
town, or Tra, ultra or beyond ; the latter, perhaps, 
is preferable ; that is, the inhabitants of the region 
beyond the water ; as they must have had a deno- 
mination before the period when their town became 
of note; and if that difficulty were surmounted, an- 
other would arise, for that town had a name, and that 
name was Tre Lundain, or Caer Lundain. The 
Britons would have called the country beyond the 



234 HISTORY OF THE biutoxs. 

stream, Tranovant, and the inhabitants would have 
the names of Tranovanti, Tranovantiaid, Tranovan- 
tion, Tranovantwyr, Tranovantwys, Tranovantwyson, 
and Gwyr Tranovant : or else, by the inflection of 
the word, Tranovanhi, Tranovanhiaid, Tranovanhon, 
Tranovanhwyr,Tranovanhwys, and Tranovanhwyson. 

II. The Icent, Cenimagni, Cenomes, Cenomanni, 
or Cenimanni, inhabited the counties of Cambridge, 
Suffolk, Norfolk, and Huntingdon, perhaps the north 
of Bedfordshire to the Ouse, and the south of Nor- 
thamptonshire to the Nen ; and Venta Cenoman- 
norum, Venta Icenorum, or Caster near Norwich, 
was their chief town. 

The first name Iceni is derived from Cyn, first, a- 
head, forward, before, or foremost, having y or the ar- 
ticle the prefixed ; thence the people would be called 
Cyni, Cyniad, Cynion, Cynwyr, Cynwys, and Cyn- 
wyson, or with the article, Y Cyni, &c. that is, the 
first or forward men, or men who are placed furthest, 
or at the extremity. The other name of Cenimagni, 
or, more properly, Cenimanni, and Cenomanni, is 
compounded of the Cyn above explained, and man, 
a place, spot, or region ; and with such addition the 
names, in British, would be Cyn-y-mani, Cyn-y-ma- 
niaid, and Cyn-y-manwys, but more correctly com- 
pounded, as, Cynvani, Cynvaniaid, Cynvanion, Cyn- 
vanwyr, Cynvanwys, Cynvanwyson, and Gwyr y 
Cynvanau ; and Cenomes implies the same, being 
derived from Cyn, and Ma, another word for a place 
or spot ; that is Cyn-y-mawys, Cynmawys, or Cyn- 
vawys, and Gwyr Cyn Ma, the people of the head- 
most or forward regions. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 235 

III. The Coritani, Coitani, and Corii, should more 
properly have been called Corani, as we find a city 
belonging to them called Ratis-Corion, which sup- 
ports the probability of their being the same with 
the people called Coraniaid, in the Historical Triads. 

The curious record, in which they are mentioned, 
is as follows : " Tair Gormet a daeth ir Ynys hon, ac 
nid aeth yr un drachevyn : cindaud y Coraniaid, a 
daeth ant yma yn oes Lut mab Beli, ac nid aeth yr un 
onatynt drachevyn ; ail, gormes y Gwytyl Fichti, ac 
nid aeth yr un drachevyn ; trydet, gores y Saeson, ac 
nid aethant drachevyn." " Three molestations came 
into this island, and not one of them went away again : 
the nation of the Coranians, who came hither in the 
time of Luth, son of Beli, of whom none went away 
again ; secondly, the invasion of the Gwydhelian 
Picts, of whom none went away; thirdly, the invasion 
of the Saxons, and they did not go away again." 

Another ancient memorial mentions the Coranians 
amongst seven invaders of Britain, these were Draig 
Prydain, y Draig Estraun, y Gwyr Ledrithiaug, y 
Coraniaid, y Cesariaid, y Gwydyl Fichti, a'r Saeson ; 
or, the Procreant of Britain, the foreign Procreant,* 
the Half appearing Men,! the Coranians, the Cesa- 
rians, the Gwydhelian Picts, and the Saxons. 

Out of several words in the British tongue similar 

* The word Draig, in the original, is here rendered according 
to its abstract or primary import. See the word in O. Pughe's 
Dictionary. 

t The word Ledrithiawg is literally rendered above ; its general 
meaning is, abounding with illusion, illusive, deceiving, or ma- 
gical. 



236 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

in sound to the names of the above-mentioned tribe, 
I am rather at a loss which to select as the most 
applicable : the name of Cawri means mighty men, 
worthies, princes, giants : hence Corydon, Corydiaid, 
Corydwyr, Corydwys ; Corodon, Corodiaid, Coro- 
dwyr, Corodwys ; or Corani, Coraniaid, Coranion, 
Coranwyr, Coranwys : and Coreini, Coreiniaid, Cor- 
einion, Coreinwyr, and Coreinwys, appellations de- 
noting men that are liberal, generous, or lavish. 

IV. The Cassii possessed all Hertfordshire and 
Bedfordshire up to the Nen on the north, and the 
adjoining parts of Buckinghamshire. 

We find the Cassii likewise called Cattieuchlani ; 
both the appellations are nearly of the same import, 
except that the latter has an addition, denoting their 
residence in coverts or woods. The former would 
be written in the British language Casi, Casiaid, Ca- 
sion, Caswyr; or Caseiaid, Caseion, and Caseiwys, 
that is, men in hostility, or men addicted to hostility ; 
the other would be Cati-y-Gwyllon, Catau-y-Gwyl- 
lon, Catwylloni, Cadwylloniaid, Cadwyllonwys, Cat- 
wylloni, Catwylloniaid, and Catwyllonwys, the bat- 
tlers or warriors of the coverts ; and omitting the 
word Gwyll, a covert, they would be called Cati, 
Catiaid, Catwyr, Catwys, Catwyson ; or Cateiaid, 
Gate ion, Cateiwys, and Cedwyr ; which last word is 
used for men of battle or warriors, in a general ac- 
ceptation. Gwyllon is frequently used for satyrs, 
spirits of the woods, or spirits of the gloom and 
some of the old poets have the fine epithet Cadwyl- 
lon, or gloomy powers of battle. 

V, The Dob uni had that part of Gloucestershire 



HISTORY OF THE. BRITONS. 237 

which lies north of the hill of Wotton-under-Edge,and 
east of the hills which bound the eastern side of the 
vale of the Severn, and the low valleys of Oxfordshire 
on the north side of the Thames, down to the con- 
fluence of the Tame, and the country about the Tame 
up to its sources in Buckinghamshire ; their north- 
western and northern boundaries being the summit 
of the chain of hills on those sides of the two last 
mentioned counties ; and their eastern limit the hills 
which extend at some distance along the same side 
of the Tame through its whole course. 

The same word is the origin of the names of this 
people, and of the rivers Thames and Tame : that 
word is Tdv, or the spreading out, and it is the ap- 
pellation of many rivers, which, like these two, run 
along level valleys, and the waters of which spread 
out much. The people inhabiting such low regions 
might be indifferently called, Taveini, Taveiniaid, 
Taveinion, Taveinwyr, Tavern wys, Taveinwyson, and 
Gwyr y Tavain ; or, Teiveini, Teiviniaid, Teivinion, 
Teivinwyr, Teivinwys, Teivinwyson, and Gwyr 
Teivi, or the men of the spreads or dales. Particular 
forms of construction would change the initials, and 
then the names would be more like Dobuni ; as, 
Dyma Daveini, here are Dobuni. 

VI. The Huiccii, or Jugantes, had Gloucestershire 
from the borders of the Dobuni northwards, and the 
whole of the county of Warwick, and nearly the 
whole of Worcester. These names are only different 
forms of the same word, and mean men of gallantry, 
or brave men ; and they would be correctly written 
thus, Gwychi, Gwychiaid, Gwychion, Gwychwyr, 



238 HISTORY OF THE BRITON'S. 

Gvvychweis, Gwychweision, Gwyr Gwychion, and 
Gweis Gwychion; or thus, Gwychini, Gwycheiniaid, 
Gwycheinion, Gwycheinwyr, Gwycheinwys, and 
Gwyr Gwychain ; and also Gwycheinti, Gwycheinti- 
aid, Gwycheintion, Gwycheintwyr, Gwycheintwys, 
and Gwyr Gwychaint. From the same word are 
also formed Gwychyriaid, Gwychyron, Gwychyrwys, 
Gwychyriaint, Gwychyrogion, Gwychyrolion, and 
Gwyr Gwychyr. In certain forms of construction, 
the initials of all these words are dropped, which 
shows the affinity to be closer; as, 

Dyna Wyciii. 
There are Huiccii. 

Dyma Wycheintwys 
Here are Jugantes. 

VII. The Ancalites had the eastern parts of the 
counties of Oxford and Buckingham, and bordered 
upon the Huiccii to the west. 

The origin of this name very probably is Uch- 
elitwys, or the inhabitants of the high grounds, for 
that was their situation, and they were so dis- 
tinguished from their neighbours, the Taveini, or 
the people of the dales. They might be also called 
Ucheliaid, Uchelwyr, Uchelwys, and Gwyr yr 
Uchelion. 

VIII. The Cornavii, Carnabii, or Corinavii, in- 
habited all Cheshire ; and all Shropshire on the 
north and east of the Severn ; and all Staffordshire, 
with some of the adjacent borders of Warwickshire 
and Leicestershire ; and Uriconium or Wroxeter was 
their chief city. 

The small headland between the rivers Dee and 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 239 

Mersey is too inconsiderable, I think, to have given 
a name to this extensive nation, as Mr. Whitaker 
would have it. Not wishing to take the liberty of 
altering the word, I am somewhat doubtful from what 
origin to trace it ; except it may be from Corain, 
circling or winding, and aiv, streams ; if so, the people 
would be called Coreineivi, Coreineiviaid, Corei- 
neivion, Coreineivwyr, and Coreineivwys, or the in- 
habitants of the banks of winding rivers, names 
rendered very applicable by the two great rivers, 
the Severn and the Dee, on which their country 
chiefly lay. 

The eight nations above specified inhabited the 
Roman division of the island called Flavia Csesari- 
ensis, and Flavia Csesariensis having the Thames 
and the hills of Wotton-under-Edge for its southern 
limit, the Severn on the west, and the Mersey, Don, 
and Humber on the north. 

I. The Setantii, Sistuntii, or Sistantii, inhabited 
Lancashire, and the southern parts of Westmoreland, 
having Rhigodunum, Coccium, or Blackrode for 
their chief town. 

The name of this tribe, and that of the Voluntii, 
probably have reference to each other ; for it would 
seem that one occupied a fruitful soil, and chiefly 
followed agriculture, whilst the other tended their 
flocks in the more hilly country. Agreeably to such 
a supposition, I make Syddynt an agricultural farm 
or tenement, to be the original of the appellation of 
the Setantii ; from which word the people would be 
called Syddynti, Syddyntiaid, Syddyntion, Syddynt- 
wyr, Syddyntwys; or, Syddyni, Syddyniaid, Syddyn- 



240 HISTORY 01- THE BRITONS 

wyr, and Syddynwys, from Syddyn, the primary form 
of the word ; the import of which is, the dwellers in 
farms, or those who cultivate the land. 

II. The Volantii, or Voluntii, possessed the north- 
ern parts of Westmoreland and all Cumberland to 
the wall of Hadrian on the north ; having Volanty, or 
Ellenborough, in the latter county, for their capital. 

In contradistinction to the Setantii, the Volantii 
were the people of the forests ; deriving their name 
from Gwyllaint, a region abounding with coverts or 
wilds ; and hence they would have the appellations of 
Gwylleinti, Gwylleintiaid, Gwylleintion, Gwyllein- 
twyr, Gwylleintwys, and Gwyr y Gwyllaint, or the 
woodlanders. As the name has a mutable initial, 
it approaches nearer to Volantii under some forms of 
construction ; as, 

Gweli Wylleinti yno. 

Thou wilt see Volantii there. 

III. The Bregantes possessed Yorkshire to the 
Don and Humber on the south, all Durham and a 
little of Northumberland lying south of the wall of 
Hadrian. 

Brigant,* from Brig, implies in the British a 
summit, or upper situation; from which may be 
formed, Briganti, Brigantiaid, Brigantion, Brigant- 
wyr, Brigantwys, Brigantwyson, Brigantweis, Bri- 
gantweison, Gwyr y Brigant ; and also Brigeinti, 



* By altering the word to Brygant, the name would be syno- 
nymous with the definition given of the Bibroces, that is, the 
people of the brakes and thickets. 



HISTORY OK THE BRITONS. 24 J 

Brigeintiaid, Brigeintion, Brigeintwyr, Brigeintwys, 
and Brigeintwyson, the people of the summits, or of 
the upper regions. 

There is a very curious war dance still preserved 
in Wales, called Gware Brigant, the play of the Bri- 
gant, or Brigantian exercise. The three foregoing 
nations were comprised in the Roman province of 
Maxima, or Maxima Csesariensis. 

I. The Ottadini possessed all Northumberland, 
except a small part to the south of the wall of Hadrian, 
all Lothian and Mers, and the half of Tweedale. 

One of the most celebrated bards of the sixth cen- 
tury was Aneurin, a chieftain of the Otodini. He 
wrote an elegy on a signal defeat sustained by his 
countrymen, in the battle of Cattraeth, in which he 
himself bore a conspicuous part. This piece, which 
is still extant, bears the title of Gododin, and con- 
sists of three hundred and sixty-three stanzas, being 
the number of the Otodinian chiefs in that battle ; of 
whom, says he, " there escaped but three by feat of 
arms ; two dogs of war from Aeron, Cynon fierce, and 
I my hallowed muse did save from spilling of my 
blood." 

Subsequently to this event, the Saxon power pre- 
vailed in Otodinia, and Aneurin retired to the 
monastery of St. Iltutus in South Wales, where he 
passed the remainder of his days. 

From Gododin, and Manau Gododin, the names of 
the country, which imply regions bordering on the 
coverts, the people were called Gododini, Godo- 
diniaid, Gododinion, Gododin wyr, and Gododin wys. 
From the initial being mutable it may be proper to 

R 



242 HISTORY OF THE BRITON'S. 

shew the appellation under a form affected by it, as, 

" Gwyr a aeth Ododin, chwerthin wanar." 

w Heroes traversed Otodinia, a joyous course." — Aneurin. 

II. The Gadeni had the small part of Cumberland 
which lies north of the wall of Hadrian, Tiviotdale, 
Tweedale up to the Tweed, and Clydesdale to La- 
nark on the north-west. 

Very probably this nation inhabited a country 
which is called Goddau, or the groves, in our old 
manuscripts ; for, by a different termination, the 
name will sound like Gadeni, as Goddain, abounding 
with groves, and hence the people would have the 
appellations of Goddeini, Goddeiniaid, Goddeinion, 
Goddeinwyr, Goddeinwys, Goddeinwyson, Goddein- 
weis, Goddeinweision, Goddeinogi, Goddeinogiaid, 
Godcleinogion, Goddeinigion, and Gwyr Goddau. 

III. The Selgov^e inhabited Anandale, Nithisdale 
and Galloway to the Dee ; and perhaps the south- 
east of Kyle, and the south-west of Clydesdale. 

The name of this people is descriptive of their 
position in a country upon the dividing water ; and 
it is the original from which Sol way is to be traced. 
It is a compound from Sail, that branches out, se- 
parates or divides, and Gwy, a stream. These two 
radical words uncompounded would preserve the 
mutable initial of the latter, thus Sail Gwy : but 
otherwise it would be written Sallwy ; the first form 
accounts forthegin Selgovae, and the other shows why 
it is omitted in Solway. There is another radical 
word, which is ma, a place, very frequently affixed 
to others in forming names, and then it changes into 



HISTORY OF THE BRTTOXS. 243 

va. With this addition Sail Gwy would then be 
Sail Gwyva, or Sallwyva, the region upon the divid- 
ing stream, which approaches still nearer to Selgov. 
Hence the people would be named Sall-Gwyvai, Sail- 
wyvaaid, Sallwyv'aon, Sallwyvawyr, Sallwyvawys, 
Gwyr Sallwyva, Gwyr ar Sallwy, and Gwyr ar Sall- 
Gwy. 

IV. The Novantes possessed the whole of Gallo- 
way lying west of the Dee. The appellation of No- 
vant signifies a situation abounding with streams, or 
in the water, and is descriptive of the country of this 
people. They themselves were called Novanti, No- 
vantiaid, Novantion,Novantwyr, Novantwys,Novant- 
wyson, Novantweis, Novantweision, Novantigion, 
and Gwyr Novant, or the men of the region border- 
ing upon the water. 

The country of the Novantes is mentioned by 
Aneurin, when he enumerates the forces in Cattraeth 
in these words : 

" Tri 1 1 wry Novant ; 
Pymmwnt, a phumcant 
Tri chwn a thrichant ; 
Tri chwe chad varchawg 
Eidyn euruchawg ; 
Tri llu llurygaivg ; 
Tri eur-deyrn torchawg ; 
Tri marchawg dywal, 
Tri chant gyhaval ; 
Tri chyvnaid cysnar 
Chwervysgynt esgar : — 
Tri theyrn Maori 
A dyvu o Vrython." 

" Three from Novant ; five myriad and five hundred ; three 
chiefs and three hundred ; three times six troops of horsemen of 



244 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

Eidyn arrayed in gold ; three loricated hosts ; three princes wear- 
ing golden torques ; three furious knights, equalled by three hun- 
dred more ; three heroes leaping onward together, who bitterly 
mixed with the foes : three sovereign kings there came of Britons." 

V. The Damnii bordered on the north of the No- 
vantes, Selgovae, and Gadeni, being separated from 
them by a range of mountains. They inhabited all 
Carrick, Cunningham, and Renfrew, and probably 
the northern and western parts of Kyle, and the 
north-eastern of Clydesdale ; the wall of Antoninus 
was their northern barrier. 

The name of this people implies that they inha- 
bited the deep vales or glens between mountains : 
for I imagine that it is to be identified in the British 
words Dyfni, Dyvniaid, Dyvnwyr, Dyvnwys, Dyv- 
nwyson, and Gwyr y Dyvnau, or the men of the deeps. 
The root of these names is Dy vyn, from which in an- 
other form, is also derived the appellation of the 
Damnonii, or the men of Devonshire. 

The five nations above mentioned were included in 
the Roman Province of Valentia. 

I. The Horestii inhabited Strathern and the re- 
cesses of the neighbouring mountains of Perth, lying 
south of the Tay. 

This people probably received their name from 
the strong position of their country, it being the most 
inaccessible part of the Grampian mountains ; for 
the word Hyrwyst from which it seems to be derived 
signifies, that easily or aptly hinders, that is easily 
defended, or an impregnable barrier ; whence the 
name of the inhabitants, Hyrwysti, and Hyrwystiaid. 

II. The Vecturones possessed all Perth, with the 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 245 

exception of the small portion lying south of the Tay, 
the whole of Gawry, Angus, and Merns ; and the nar- 
row region of Mar, south of the Dee. 

There are several words in the British language 
which bear affinity to this name ; as, Gwychyron,* 
brave ones ; Gwythyron, men of wrath ; Peithyron,f 
men of the open, or out country ; and Uchderon, the 
inhabitants of the heights. I am induced to reject 
these appellations, in favour of a country so often 
mentioned by Aneurin, in the Gododin ; and es- 
pecially so, as that name may be identified in the 
river Erne and Strathern. The one referred to is 
Aeron, the original name of the river Erne, and of 
several other rapid foaming streams. The original 
situation of the Vecturones was above, beyond, or 
north of that river ; whence, accordingly, they would 
be called Uchaeronwys, Uchaeroni, Uchaeroniaid, 
Uchaeronwyr, and Gwyr-Uchaeron, or the men of the 
region above Aeron. 

III. The Taixali inhabited all of Mar, on the 
north of the Dee, and Buchan. 

This nation had their appellation, probably, from 
Tachial, the terminating fair, or open, country ; a 
name nearly equivalent to the fair headland ; whence 



* This is the root from which Mr. Whitaker derives the name. 

f Peithyron, having a mutable initial, approaches more nearly 
to Vecturones under some forms of construction ; as, Dyma 
Beithyron,here are Vecturones. The root of this word is Paith, 
what is clear, open or out; and hence the name Picti, or Peithi, 
the men of the open, or out country ; so, perhaps, with respect to 
the bounds of the Roman Empire, 



246 HISTORY OK THE BUTTONS. 

the inhabitants would be called Tachiali, Tachialiaid, 
Tachialon, Tachialwyr, and Tachialwys. 

IV. The Vacomagi had all Bamff, Murray, and 
Inverness to the town of that name ; nearly all Bade- 
noch and Argyle ; and the small part of Braidalban 
lying north of the Tay. 

By referring to a map of Scotland, it would appear 
that these people inhabited a chain of deep glens, ex- 
tending across the island. Such being their situation, 
it would be appropriate enough to call them Paucy- 
mogi, Paucymogiaid, Paucymogion, Paucymogwyr, 
Paucymogwys, and Gwyr y Bau Gymog, or the men 
of the country abounding with glens. 

V. The Albani, or Damnii Albani, were situated 
south of the Vacomagi in the parts of Athol and 
Braidalban lying south of the Tay, the north of 
Strathern and of Manteith. 

The word Alban means the greatest, utmost, or 
superior height ; hence Albani, Albaniaid, Albanion, 
Alban wyr, Alban wys, Alban wyson, Albanweis, Alban- 
weision, Albanigiaid, Albanigion, Albanogi, Albano- 
giaid, Albanogion, Gwyr Alban, and Gwyr Albanau, 
the men of the upper mountains. 

By the name Alban the Welsh now mean Scotland 
in general. 

VI. The Attacotti inhabited nearly the extent of 
the present district of Lenox. 

This nation probably dwelt on one of the extremi- 
ties of Coed Celyddon, or the Caledonian forest ; at 
least the name seems to countenance such a suppo- 
sition ; for Eitha-coeti, Eithocoetiaid, and Eithocoet-: 
wys, imply the men of the extremity of the wood. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 247 

The six nations above specified were comprehended 
in the Roman Province of Vespasiana. 

I. The Caledoni inhabited the interior parts of 
Inverness, the western of Badenoch and of Braidal- 
ban, the eastern of Lochaber, and the north-east of 
Lorn. 

These people were so called on account of their 
dwelling in the coverts of the forest. The Welsh 
name for that kind of region is Celyddon, which 
means literally seclusions, or coverts. The appella- 
tion occurs very often in old manuscripts, and some- 
times with the addition to it of Coed, wood. The 
people are generally called Gwyr Celyddon, the men 
of the coverts, or woodmen ; they might be also 
named Celyddoni, Celyddoniaid, and Celyddonwys, 
or Caledonians. 

" Avallen beren berav ei haeron 
A dyv yn argel yn argoel Celyddon." 

" Sweet apple tree, whose fruit is most delicious, grows in a 
shelter in the skirt of the wood of Celyddon." 

Merddin. 

II. The CantjE inhabited the eastern parts of 
Ross. 

The names of this people, and of the Cantii of 
Kent, are of the same origin, which is Caint, a 
word descriptive of their respective countries. That 
part of the county of Ross, in which the Cantae 
resided, compared with the surrounding regions, is 
tolerably open, and free from high mountains and 
rocks. The name of the inhabitants would be in the 
British tongue Ceinti, or otherwise, Ceintiaid, Cein- 
tion, and so forth, as under the name of Cantii, 



248 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

III. The Log i extended along the seacoast of 
Sutherland, to the Ale or Ila in Caithness. 

The appellation, in the British, nearest in sound 
to the name of this tribe, is Lygi, the inhabitants of 
the fenny district, or morass. 

IV. The Carnabii inhabited all Caithness north 
of the Ale. 

These people were called Cerny wi like the inhab- 
itants of Cornwall, and for the same reason ; which 
was, that they were both seated on promontories. See 
a further illustration in the account of the Carnabii 
of Cornwall. 

V. The Catini were situated along the seashore 
of Strathnavern. 

Some of the Britons were armed with a simple 
weapon, though formidable in the manner in which it 
was used. It was a club of about a yard long, with 
a heavy end worked into four sharp points ; to the thin 
end, or handle, a cord was fixed, which enabled a 
person well trained, to throw it with great force and 
exactness, and then by a jerk to bring it back to his 
hand, either in order to renew his throw, or to keep 
it in his hand for close action. This weapon was 
called Cat, and Catai ; the adjective of this word 
would be Catin ; and the men who used it were 
called Catini, Catiniaid, Catinion, Catinwyr, and 
Catinwys, but more generally Cateion. Probably 
the people now spoken of were club-men remarkable 
for being armed in the manner above described. 

VI. The Mert^: inhabited the interior parts of 
Strathnavern and Sutherland. 

If the principal occupation of these people was 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 249 

tending their cattle, which from their situation was 
very probably the case, they might have been appro- 
priately called Meirydi, Meiri, Meiriaid, Meirioni, 
Meirioniaid, Meirionwyr, Meirionwys, Meirwyr, and 
Meirwys, or the dairymen. 

VII. The Carnonace inhabited the shore of Ross 
from Loch Assynt to Loch Breyn. 

If the country assigned to these people abounds 
with heaps of loose stones, or earns, Carneinwg, and 
Carneinog, would be proper epithets for it ; whence 
the inhabitants would be called Carneinogi, Carnein- 
ogiaid, Carneinogion, Carneinogwyr, Carneinog wys, 
and Gwyr Carneinog, or the men of the stony region. 

But on consulting the general form of the country, 
I am led to believe that it was called Cerneinog, 
or the region abounding with points or juttings : for 
the whole coast shoots out in points into the sea. 
From a country bearing such a name, the inhabitants 
would be called Cerneinogi, and Cerneinogiaid. 

VIII. The Cerones extended from Loch Assynt, 
to the river Itys, or Sheyl, in the county of Inverness. 

The original appellation of this tribe might have 
been Cawron, or Cawronwys, the mighty ones. 

IX. The Creones had the river Itys or Sheyl for 
their northern boundary, and extended to the Longus 
or Loch Long on the south. 

Perhaps these people were called Creon, and Cre- 
onwys, or the shouters, from their being more re- 
markable than others for shouting in battle ; or, on 
account of their fierceness, their name might have 
been Crenon, or Crenonwys, the men of blood. 

X. The Epjdii inhabited Cantine and Knapdale. 



250 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

These people were so called, from a word which 
probably was the name of their country, descriptive 
of its singular projection into the sea. The word 
which I allude to is Ebyd, implying, abstractedly, a 
going from, a passing off; and used as the name of 
a country, it would imply a place running out, or 
darting from ; and according to the idioms of some 
of the British dialects, Ebyd would be changed to 
Epyd ; especially so, with the accession of another 
syllable. Thence the inhabitants of the Ebyd, or 
peninsula, would be called Ebydi, Ebydiaid, Eby- 
dion, Ebydwyr, Ebydwys ; or, Epydi, Epydiaid, Epy- 
dion, Epydwyr, and Epydwys. 

This completes the catalogue of the several prin- 
cipal tribes, who originally inhabited Britain, accor- 
ding to the best information, which the Romans were 
able to procure. It was by colonies, from some of these 
nations, that Ireland became progressively peopled ; 
and chiefly from such as occupied the western shores; 
who, in general, preserved their original appellations, 
or assumed other names of the same import. It is 
worth observing, that in Ireland the Belgse, who 
arrived there in subsequent periods, formed a body 
of people distinct from the first colonies, until they 
subdued them ; and then these two leading distinc- 
tions gradually ceased to exist, and the peculiarities, 
which formed the Belgic dialect of the Cimbric 
language, became prevalent amongst all the inha- 
bitants of the island.* 



* We have documents, in British history, sufficient to shew 
what were the leading differences between the Belgic, and the 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 251 

Those writers who treat of the period in British 
history, which I am now discussing, generally run 
into two extremes, equally injurious to the subject. 
One party depends too implicitly upon the fidelity 
of ancient chronicles and traditions, the other rejects 
everything as a silly fable, but what is transmitted 
from the classic pen of a Grecian or a Roman author. 

Guided by a spirit of discrimination, much inter- 
esting history might be produced, by investigating 
all the old chronicles and traditionary memorials; 
and by comparing them with the laws and customs 
of the ancient Britons. 

Thus it might be made to appear, that the Cym- 
brians, or less properly, the Celts, agreeably to the 
tenets of the Bardic religion, adhered most strictly 
to the principles of the liberty of individuals, even to 
the prejudice of general security ; and that they were 
so jealous of this maxim, as never to delegate great 
power to a supreme chief, but in times of imminent 
danger, such as an invasion by a foreign enemy, and 
the like ; and that they must consequently have been 
always divided into small states ; and therefore, ac- 
cording to their constitution, never could have uni- 
ted in an extensive and efficient empire. 

By pursuing the inquiry, in the way above men- 
tioned, the disputed point, whether writing was known 



dialects of the original Britons ; and those documents prove the 
identity of the Belgic and the present Irish language. The 
following instance will serve to illustrate the point : the name of 
Vortigern would be written Feartigearn by the Irish; but he is 
always called Gortheyrn, or Gwrtheyrn, by the Welsh. 



252 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

to the Britons, before the arrival of the Romans in 
the island, may be fully established in the affir- 
mative.* It must consequently follow that they 
applied this art to some uses ; but, before those are 
particularized, it may be proper to remark, that it 
was not applied to preserve any of the bardic in- 
stitutes, either political or religious, on account of 
the strict regulation, requiring every member of the 
order to be able to recite the whole from memory ; 
which was done with all possible publicity at the 
stated meetings. This regular system of oral tra- 
dition was so strictly followed, that it was considered 
as a more certain means of guarding against lapses 
and innovations than even could be established from 
the use of letters, according to the then confined state 
of written composition. The principal use therefore, 
which would be made of writing, would be, to note 
remarkable events, next to the recording of some 
particular proofs, enjoined by the laws, some of 
which it may be proper here to mention. The law of 
Gavelkind, or equal distribution of property amongst 
co-relatives, had a universal operation ; and many 
usages were founded upon this law, which required 
a direct proof of kindred pedigree for several gene- 
rations ; and to attain this with facility, resort would 
be had to writing. For instance, it was incumbent 
on a man to produce a clear record of his pedigree 
for nine generations, to entitle him to the rank of a 
freeman ; and consequently to his allotment of pro- 

* See the matter discussed, in treating of the Roman period, 
being the next epoch of this sketch. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 253 

perty in his community. His pedigree was then in 
fact his title deed to whatever was possessed by him ; 
therefore those records were not the vague list of 
names, which writers, unacquainted with the laws of 
the Britons, have generally considered them to be. 

Another instance of law usage, requiring a clear 
proof, was that system of fine and compensation for 
crimes, by which the family of a guilty individual 
was affected to the ninth degree of consanguinity, 
with respect to the contribution to be levied ; as also 
was the family of the person suffering the injury, in 
partaking of each his respective share of the compen- 
sation made by the other party ; which was done on 
both sides in ratios, according to the degree of rela- 
tionship. 

Such precautions being required, as are above 
mentioned, in preserving proofs of kindred amongst 
private persons, it must necessarily follow, that 
British chieftains were not less jealous of having a 
clear title to the supremacy exercised over their re- 
spective tribes ; for it was only by being regularly the 
heads of the most ancient families that they could 
aspire to their situations. 

Some of those pedigrees having escaped the ra- 
vages of time, and being preserved under the before 
mentioned necessity of being correct, we cannot do 
less than consider them as curious and valuable. 



EPOCH II. 



FROM CiESAR S FIRST INVASION OF BRITAIN TO THE FINAL EVACU- 
ATION OF IT BY THE ROMANS, COMPRISING A PERIOD OF ABOUT 
FIVE HUNDRED YEARS. 



Chapter I. 

A transient view of the state of this Island, as to religion, mo- 
rals, and general knowledge, when the Romans first projected 
its subjugation ; occasionally interspersed with retrospective 
observations. 

Having already given a sketch of the history of the 
Britons prior to the Roman invasion, I shall now 
attempt to carry the narrative forward, and proceed 
still further with the history of the same people until 
the time when the Roman legions were totally with- 
drawn, and Britain ceased to be any longer a part of 
the Roman Empire. It is a very interesting period 
of the British history ; and it will be my endeavour 
to exhibit some of its most prominent features, and 
to record some of its most important occurrences. 

The state of knowledge and civilization among our 
ancestors, when Caesar first formed the design of sub- 
duing them, is a point on which antiquaries and his- 
torians have entertained very different opinions. While 
some have considered them as a nation of barbarians 
and savages, scarcely superior to the Esquimaux, the 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 255 

Caffres, or the New Hollanders, others have main- 
tained that they were really an enlightened people, 
who had arrived at an advanced state of intellectual 
improvement, and of social and political maturity, 
under the direction of a numerous and respectable 
order of instructors, whose precepts and maxims 
indicated an eminent degree of mental culture, and 
would have suffered no degradation by a fair compa- 
rison with those of the most renowned of the Grecian 
or Roman sages. And this latter opinion seems far 
from being so ill-founded or untenable as some are 
apt to suppose. 

The instructors here alluded to were the Druids, 
among the ancient Gauls and Britons a most dignified 
and distinguished order of men, to whom the province 
of public instruction chiefly appertained. Of these 
renowned preceptive functionaries, many celebrated 
writers among the ancients have undertaken to give 
a particular account, as may be seen by consulting 
our national historians, or the Encyclopaedia Britan- 
nica, and the Cyclopaedia of Chambers and Rees, 
under the words Bards and Druids. Among those 
ancient writers were Caesar, Cicero, Diodorus Siculus, 
Strabo, Pomponius Mela, Suetonius, Tacitus, Pliny, 
Plutarch, Diogenes Laertius, and Ammianus Mar- 
cellinus. 

Strabo distinguished the ancient British and Gallic 
philosophers into three classes, bards, vates, (or ovates), 
and Druids ; which is correct, and shews that he had 
taken good care to obtain authentic information. He 
also says, that their interest with the people was so 
great, that they could stop armies on the very point 



250 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

of engaging, and so accommodate their differences as 
to effect a hearty reconciliation. 

Diodorus Siculus expresses himself to the same 
purpose, and says, that the people paid a great regard 
to their exhortations, not only in the affairs of peace, 
but even in those of war ; and that they were respected 
both by friends and foes, and would sometimes step 
in between two hostile armies, while standing with 
swords drawn and spears extended, ready to engage ; 
and by their eloquence, as by an irresistible enchant- 
ment, would prevent the effusion of blood, and pre- 
vail upon them to sheath their swords and be recon- 
ciled. How happy would it be for the world at large 
if the same pacific disposition and benevolent spirit 
which led them so to act were sometimes conspicuous 
features in the character, and in the daily conduct, 
of our modern Christian priests and philosophers ! To 
a sincere Christian it must be a most humiliating and 
lamentable consideration, that heathen priests (bloody 
Druids, as they have been called) should appear 
more pacific and humane, more inimical to war and 
bloodshed, than men who profess themselves to be 
the disciples, and even the priests and ministers of 
Him who is justly denominated the Prince of Peace, 
and who came into the world not to destroy men's 
lives, but to save them. 

Suetonius, in his Life of Claudius, charges the 
Druids with offering human sacrifices, as Caesar also 
does in his Commentaries ; but Diodorus Siculus af- 
firms, that it was but rarely, or only on extraordinary 
occasions, that they made such offerings. Whatever 
was the fact it seems certain that, even in this trait 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 257 

of character, they fell vastly short of most of our 
modern Christian nations, who sometimes sacrifice 
myriads of human victims in a day, without the least 
pity, shame, or sorrow. Augustus and Tiberius, it 
seems, abolished the said Druidical practice in Gaul, 
and Claudius in Britain; shocked, as we may presume, 
at the very idea of it, as connected with Druidism, 
but unable, or unwilling, to apply the case to them- 
selves, who were at the same time in the habit of sa- 
crificing human victims in immense numbers. Thus 
it often happens, that men will indignantly condemn 
in the conduct of others, what they constantly allow 
in their own without the least scruple, alarm, or dis- 
quietude. 

The Druids, according to Ammianus Marcellinus, 
resembled the Pythagoreans ; and several authors 
have asserted, that Pythagoras himself had been 
among the Gallic Druids, and was initiated in their 
philosophy. In which case it may be concluded 
that he had derived a great portion of his know- 
ledge and wisdom from them. 

According to Diodorus Siculus, Strabo, Mela, and 
others, the Druids used to enter into many disquisi- 
tions and disputations in their schools, concerning the 
form and magnitude of the universe in general, and of 
the earth in particular • and even concerning the most 
sublime and secret mysteries of nature. They were 
also said to be versed in astronomy, astrology, arith- 
metic, geometry, and geography, as well as mechanics. 
Of their extraordinary proficiency in the last men- 
tioned, we have very convincing proofs in the stupen- 
dous remains of Stonehenge, and others of their works, 

s 



258 HISTORY Ol- THE BRITOXS. 

some single stones in which, are said to be above forty 
tons weight. Botany, medicine, and natural philoso- 
phy, are likewise said to have been objects of their 
diligent and successful study. 

Both Cicero and Caesar seem to give them credit 
for deep, extensive, and valuable knowledge. The 
former says he was personally acquainted with one 
of the Gallic Druids, Divitiacus the iEduan, a man of 
quality in his country, who professed to have a 
thorough knowledge of the laws of nature, or that 
science which the Greeks call Physics, or Physio- 
logy.* Strabo has preserved one of their physiolo- 
gical tenets concerning the universe, viz. That it 
was never to be destroyed, but was to undergo a suc- 
cession of great changes and revolutions, which were 
to be produced sometimes by the agency or predo- 
minance of water, and sometimes by that oijire. 

Some have thought so highly of their astronomical 
proficiency, as to conclude that they really had in- 
vented instruments which answered the same purpose 
with our telescopes, from its being said by Diodorus 
Siculus, that in the Hyperborean Island (supposed to 
be Britain) the moon was seen as if she were at but 
a small distance from the earth, and having hills and 
mountains, like ours, on its surface. Some also have 
been of opinion that they were acquainted with the 
cycle of nineteen years, called the cycle of the moon, 
from its being observed by the same writer, that the 



* He is also repeatedly and respectfully mentioned by Caesar, 
who probably derived from him all, or most of his knowledge 
concerning Druidism. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 259 

Hyperboreans supposed that Apollo descended into 
their island at the end of every nineteen years, when 
the sun and moon, having performed their respec- 
tive revolutions, return to the same point, and again 
begin theircourse. Pliny has asserted, that the Druids 
had also a cycle or period of thirty years, which they 
called an age ; and which probably was the same 
with the great year of the Pythagoreans, or revolution 
of Saturn. But these things are not quite free from 
uncertainty. Of all the ancient writers, it is Caesar 
perhaps that gives the most particular account of the 
Druids ; for which reason and because he may be 
supposed to have had better opportunities of know- 
ing them than most of the rest, a summary of what he 
has said may be here given. The reader, who wishes 
to know more of what the others have related, is re- 
ferred to their respective works, or to the extracts 
which appear to be very fairly and judiciously se- 
lected in the two celebrated publications above men- 
tioned. 

The Gauls were understood to have received 
Druidism from the Britons. Their Druids, as well 
as those of Britain, possessed vast influence and power 
among the people. To them, as Caesar asserts, be- 
longed the care of divine things, of public and private 
sacrifices, with the interpretation of religion. The in- 
struction of youth was also their province ; and in such 
high veneration were they held that their country- 
men readily submitted all their differences to their 
arbitration. They were, it seems, the judges in all 
cases, and from their decisions there lay no appeal. 
Those who refused to abide by their verdict, were 



260 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

liable to excommunication and outlawry, which re- 
duced them to a dreadful dilemma ; for all such per- 
sons were reckoned among the wicked, and shunned 
by the whole community, who avoided their com- 
pany as contagious. Neither could such bring an 
action, or commence a suit in any case, or discharge 
any office in the commonwealth. 

The Gallic Druids, as Caesar relates, held a grand 
session or convention, once a year, at a consecrated 
place near the centre of the country, where vast num- 
bers of cases and controversies were decided. He 
also gives it as the prevailing opinion, or current tra- 
dition, that Druidism originated, or w r as first insti- 
tuted in Britain, whence it was introduced into Gaul ; 
and he says, that even in his time, those of the latter, 
who wished to become perfect in Druidical knowledge, 
used to visit the former for that purpose ; such per- 
fection being deemed attainable only in the British 
schools."* He further informs us that the Gallic 



* Of the existence of such a tradition in Caesar's time, there 
can be no reasonable doubt ; and that it was well founded seems 
very probable ; whence it may pretty fairly be inferred, that Bri- 
tain at some remote period, and for no short season, enjoyed a 
degree of light and knowledge beyond what its neighbours could 
boast of. This also appears to be not a little corroborated by 
certain Sanscrit MSS. (discovered by Major Wilford, and pub- 
blished in a late volume of the Asiatic Researches) which de- 
scribes the British Isles, at periods of very remote antiquity, un- 
der the names of the White Islands, Isles of the Mighty, and 
Sacred Isles of the West, &c. where the gods had their abode, 
and where, of course, knowledge and wisdom abounded more 
than any where else in the world, and whence even Brahminical 
institutions derived their origin. —See Asiatic Researches, Vol. xi. ; 
also Monthly Magazine for Feb. 1813. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 261 

Druids seldom attended the army, being exempted 
from that duty, as well as from the payment of taxes, 
besides enjoying many important immunities. Such, 
he says, were their reputation and renown, and such 
the deference paid to them by the public, that many 
chose to be of their order, while others were sent to 
their college or seminary by their parents or relations. 
And at the seminary, their first lesson or task was to 
learn a certain number of verses by heart, which some 
would be twenty years in acquiring ; for they never, 
says he, commit them to writing : not that they are 
ignorant of letters, for they make use of Greek cha- 
racters on all other occasions. But I suppose, he adds, 
they observe this custom to lock up their learning from 
the vulgar, and exercise the memory of their pupils. 

Their chief tenet, he further observes, is, that the 
soul never dies, but transmigrates after the decease 
of one body into another, which doctrine has a ten- 
dency to inspire them with courage, and a contempt 
of death. He says, they had many other traditions, 
which they taught their disciples, concerning the 
stars and their motions, the extent of the world, the 
nature of things, and the power of the immortal 
gods. 

A little further on, still speaking of the Gauls, he 
describes the whole nation as much given to super- 
stition : as if the same had not been equally the case 
with his own dear countrymen the Romans. But 
we do not mean to deny what he here lays to the 
charge of the Gauls. They were so very superstitious, 
he says, that those who were dangerously ill, or daily 
exposed to perils and death, either offered human 



262 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

sacrifices, or devoted themselves to the altar. He 
further informs us, that these sacrifices were com- 
mitted to the care of the Druids, who placed the 
victims in a sort of hollow frame or wicker case, 
where, after it had been set on fire, they were soon 
suffocated or burnt to death. 

They believed, he says, that thieves, highwaymen, 
and such like offenders, were the most acceptable 
offerings to the Deity ; but in case these happened 
to become scarce, the innocent were forced to supply 
their places.* Such is the substance of Caesar's 
account of the Druids : they held the immortality of 
the soul and its transmigration, they also held the 
necessity of human expiatory sacrifices, which appear 
to have generally consisted of malefactors, who were 
deemed to have forfeited their lives by the atrocious- 
ness of their crimes. 

Should the reader be shocked at the idea of these 
ancient British and Gallic human sacrifices, let him 
remember, that even modern Gaul and modern Bri- 
tain have also had, and still have, their human vic- 
tims ; the number of which, or the circumstances 
attending their immolation, do not appear at all to 
fall short of what occurred among their pagan and 
Druidical ancestors. Nay, some of these modern 
sacrifices are more shocking than those of the ancients, 
as the conductors of them pretend to act in the name 
of God, by the authority of Christ, and under the 
direction of the Gospel ! Myriads upon myriads of 

* See Caesar's Commentaries of his Wars in Gaul, Book vi. 
Chap. viii. ix. x. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 263 

human beings have been thus immolated in the reli- 
gious wars and persecutions of modern Christendom : 
not to mention our frequent executions of malefactors, 
which perhaps more exactly correspond with the 
Druidical human sacrifices, and, like them, always 
assume a sort of religious form or cast. 

As to the metempsychosis, or transmigration of 
souls, the Druids were not singular in their belief of 
that tenet. It was maintained by many ancient 
philosophers of distant nations, and by Origen, and 
other writers and fathers among the early Christians. 
Nor has it in modern times, and in our own country, 
been without its advocates. Of late years a very 
elegant writer, philosopher, and Christian apologist, 
avowed his belief, and published a very ingenious 
defence of it, which excited very general admiration.* 
But however objectionable this tenet may appear in 
the eyes of most people, it does not seem chargeable 
with a licentious or immoral tendency ; as its advo- 
cates always connected holiness with happiness and 
glory ; and wickedness, on the other hand, with 
misery and degradation. 

From the preceding observations, some idea may 
be formed of the state of religion, morals, and general 
knowledge, among our ancestors, when the Romans 
first came among them. However rude they might 
be deemed by Caesar and his countrymen, who con- 
sidered all other nations as barbarians, yet in point 



* Vid. Disquisitions on several subjects; No. 3. London, 1782 ; 
ascribed to the late Soame Jenyns, Esq. author of the View of 
the Internal Evidence of the Christian Religion. 



2G4 HISTORY QF THE BRITONS. 

of knowledge, we presume, they were superior to most, 
and perhaps to all of the neighbouring nations. And it 
seems pretty clear that whatsoever advantage they 
derived from the Romans, during a long connexion, 
they made a much more respectable appearance at 
the time of the arrival of these invaders, than they 
did afterwards at the time of their final departure. 
So that it may be justly said, that the Romans left 
Britain in a much less happy and respectable state 
than that in which they found it. 



Chapter II. 

Observations on certain Discrepances of opinion among some of 
our modern Archaiologists, upon the character of Druidism 
and the tenets of the Druids, and upon the question, whether 
writing was known to the Britons previously to the arrival 
of the Romans- 

Of all our modern writers on the subject of Druidism, 
none have distinguished themselves so much as 
Mr. Edward Williams, Mr. William Owen,* and 
Mr. Edward Davies. They are all very intimately and 
extensively acquainted with British antiquities and 
bardic lore, and have thrown considerable light on 
many of the subjects which they have investigated ; 
but there are some important points on which the 
last mentioned differs widely in opinion from the 
others. It may not be very difficult to account for 



* The late Dr. William Owen Pughe. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 265 

this. Mr. Williams and Mr. Owen, being of the 
bardic order, would naturally think favourably of 
Druidism ; Mr. Davies, on the other hand, beings 
himself of a different order, would view Druidism 
in a different light, and discover defects in it 
which the others had overlooked, while he himself 
perhaps would fail to observe defects equally glaring 
connected with his own order. 

Had the minds of these able writers been suffi- 
ciently unbiassed or divested of prejudice, their dis- 
quisitions would have proved more uniform, harmo- 
nious and decisive. But as they were hampered 
by strong and opposite prepossessions, it is no great 
wonder that their portraitures of Druidism should 
appear so very dissimilar. One party had seemingly 
a pretty strong predilection for Druidism, and the 
other an equally strong aversion from it. The first 
of these writers placed too much reliance on the in- 
stitutes of the chair of Glamorgan, whose legitimacy 
is doubted, while the last was perhaps equally in- 
fluenced and misled by the Bryantian system of 
mythology, which, like many other systems, has 
evidently its weak parts, and may, in this investiga- 
tion, have often been inapplicable. The one may 
also be said to have been carried too far by a strong 
attachment to liberty and the rights of man, and the 
other by a dread of innovation, and a wish to perpe- 
tuate the present established order of things. Under 
such circumstances, their accounts or disquisitions 
would necessarily prove defective, and, like too many 
historical productions, afford the authors but a slen- 
der claim to the merit or praise of impartiality. 



260 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

When we consider how different were the habits, 
situations, and connexions of the two bards from those 
of the rector, the difference in their views and their 
delineations can excite no wonder. We feel much 
more surprized at some other circumstances in their 
writings. Such for instance, as fancying that Qua- 
kerism has emanated from Druidism, and that the 
Quakers in Wales are accustomed to assemble in the 
open air, within an enclosure, called mynwent ; and 
that George Fox, in arranging his system, availed 
himself of the experience and labours of William Er- 
bury and Walter Cradock : all which seem no better 
than idle conceits.* The same may be said of the good 
rector s making the vale of cuch, under the new 
name of the vale of Cwch, to allude to the ark ; and 
making Emlyn to mean a clear lake, an emblem of 
the flood, though there is nothing like a lake in the 
whole district or near it ; also his making Nevern to 
signify a pledge of heaven, whereas Nevern is only 
a modern, or the English name of the parish ; the 
Welsh name being Nhyfer, a contraction seemingly of 
Nanhyfer. To which may be added, his making 
Dinbych (or Tenby) the sacred isle, which is no isle, 
nor any thing like it. That sacred isle, in all pro- 
bability, was Caldy, which is within a short distance 
of Tenby, and the Ynys Pyr of the ancients, a name 
sufficiently mythological, while the place seems in all 
respects well adapted to Druidical purposes, as Bard- 
sey, which he allows to have been so appropriated. 
Finally, his representing the white trefoil as a sacred 

* Preface to Llywarch Hen, p, 54. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 267 

emblem of the mysterious Three in One, as if the 
Druids had been all sound orthodox Trinitarians, 
which seems rather unlikely.* 

Most of these inaccuracies, and others that might 
be added, may be imputed probably to the mis- 
leadings of favourite systems, which the ingenious 
authors would do well to review and revise. After 
all, their labours in general are certainly very valu- 
able, and have greatly contributed to the stores of 
British antiquities. 

Another point upon which our antiquaries disagree 
is, whether writing was known to our ancestors before 
the arrival of the Romans. Carte and Whitaker 
take the negative side of the question ; while Owen 
and Davies are no less strenuous on the affirmative 
side of it. The two former lay no small stress on 
our earliest inscriptions upon stones, as well as upon 
our most ancient coins, being all in Roman charac- 
ters; which yet may admit of some doubt, at least 
as to those on the grave of Cadvan.f Mr. Owen, 
on the other side, argues, partly from the ancient law 
of Gavelkind, or equal distribution of property among 
co-relatives, which had a universal operation, as he 
seems to suppose, among the ancient Britons, and 
upon which many usages were founded requiring 
a direct proof of kindred pedigree for several 
generations, to attain which, recourse must be had to 
writing. Another instance of law usage, he says, 



* Mythology of the Druids, 395, 408. 
t Celtic Researches, 275. 



268 HISTORY OF THH BRITON'S. 

demanding- proof no less clear, and being equally indi- 
cative of the existence of written records, was that 
ancient system of fine and compensation for crimes, 
by which the family of a guilty individual was af- 
fected to the ninth degree of consanguinity, with re- 
spect to the contribution to be levied ; as also was 
the family of the person suffering the injury, in par- 
taking each respectively of the compensation made 
by the other party ; which was done on both sides 
in ratios, according to the degree of relationship.* 
All this would seem to be impracticable without the 
aid of written documents. 

Mr. Davies, on the same side, takes a very wide 
range. What he urges, though in general very in- 
genious, extends over too wide a field to admit of my 
attempting here any thing like a summary of it. His 
note on Taliesin's " Ysgrifen Brydain," in the poem 
called " Mic Dinbych," seems very plausible, if not 
conclusive. But a much more forcible argument on 
this side of the question has been furnished by those 
ancient characters, still in existence, which are called 
" Coelbien y Beirdd," and which appear to be no 
other than the identical ancient British or Druidical 
alphabet. It may be seen at the beginning of Owen's 
Grammar, and also in the Celtic Researches. t 

After all, there cannot be found a more dicisive 
proof, that writing was really known among our an- 
cestors before Caesar's time, than what has been 
supplied by Caesar himself, in a passage which has 



* Cambrian Register, Vol. ii. p. 23. 
t See page 272. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 269 

been already noticed, and of which Mr. Davies has 
given the following translation : " Nor do they deem 
it lawful to commit those things (which pertain to 
their discipline) to writing : though generally in other 
cases, and in their public and private accounts, they 
use Greek letters. They appear to me to have es- 
tablished this custom, for two reasons ; because they 
would not have their secrets divulged, and because 
they would not have their disciples depend on written 
documents, and neglect the exercise of memory."* 
This passage, undoubtedly, is as applicable to British 
as to the Gallic Druids; and therefore, notwith- 
standing Carte's glosses, it must completely decide 
the question. 



Chapter III. 

State of Britain as to its connexion or intercourse with other 
nations, before as well as after the commencement of this 
Epoch. 

It seems to have been generally supposed that the 
Britons had no kind of intercourse with other nations, 
and that even they were scarcely known to any of 
them ; till they were discovered, invaded, and sub- 
dued, by the Romans. But this must be a very er- 
roneous idea. They were certainly very well known 

* De Bello Gallico, Lib. vi. cap. 13. 



270 HISTORY OFTHK BRITONS. 

to the Belgic and Gallic nations, whose youth were 
frequently sent hither to complete their education, 
from a prevailing opinion, that the schools of this 
country afforded greatly superior advantages. That 
very opinion implies that those continental nations 
were well acquainted with the state and circumstances 
of this country, and that the intercourse between 
them and our ancestors must have been pretty 
general and extensive. Accordingly we read of a 
certain king of Soissons, before Caesar's time, who 
had much communication with this country, and held 
here some territorial possessions.* Our ancestors also 
assisted the Gallic nations in their wars with the 
Romans, which is the reason given by Caesar for 
undertaking the invasion and subjugation of their 
country. This fact is corroborated by the British 
Triads. Our ancestors, too, were known, not only to 
those neighbouring nations, but even to some that 
lay at no small distance, and that long before Caesar 
and his legions began to disturb the world. 

Carte, but more especially Whitaker, has made it 
appear from good authority, that those great com- 
mercial nations of antiquity, the Phoenicians and 
Carthaginians, traded to this island for many ages 
ere the Romans made their appearance in these 
western parts of Europe. " The first commerce of 
the Britons," says Whitaker, " was occasioned by the 
resort of the Phoenicians to their coasts. Those bold 
adventurers in navigation and traffic having planted 
colonies at Carthage and Cadiz, and ranging along 

* Csesar de Bello Gallico, Lib. ii. c. 2. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 271 

the borders of the great untraversed ocean of the 
west, reached the south-western promontories of Bri- 
tain, and entered into a trading correspondence with 
the inhabitants. The real singularity and commercial 
consequence of the voyage gave great reputation to 
the officer that conducted it, and have occasioned the 
name of Midacritus to be transmitted with honor to 
posterity. Midacritus brought the first vessel of the 
Phoenicians to our coasts ; and it was he who opened 
the first commerce of the Phoenicians with our fathers. 
He found the country to abound particularly with 
tin, which was equally useful and rare. He traf- 
ficked with the Britons for it ; and returned home 
with a valuable cargo of that metal.* Such was the 
first effort of the commercial genius of Britain, which 
was afterwards to conduct the vessels of the island 
to the shores of Carthage and Tyre, and even to raise 
the Britons superior in boldness and skill to the 
Phoenicians ! This was before the time of Herodotus, 
and about H\e hundred years before the Christian era. 
The trade was opened with the natives of the Cassi- 
terides, or Scilly Islands, one of which was greatly 
superior in size to the rest, and denominated Cassi- 
teris Insula, or the Tin-Island. The cargo which 
Midacritus brought from this island, and the account 
which he gave of it, occasioned a regular resort of 
the Phoenicians to the coast of Scilly. The trade was 
very advantageous to the state, and the track was 
solicitously concealed by the public. 

Thus continued the traffic of Britain for nearly 

* Plin. Lib. vii. c. 56. 



272 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

three hundred years, it being esteemed the most 
beneficial in Europe, and carefully sought after by 
all the commercial powers in the Mediterranean. 
The Greeks of Marseilles first followed the course of 
the Phoenician voyagers ; and some time prior to the 
period of Polybius, and about two hundred years 
before the Christian era, began to share with them in 
the trade of tin.* The Carthaginian commerce de- 
clined : the Massylian increased ; and in the reign 
of Augustus, the whole current of the British traffic 
had been gradually diverted into this channel. 

At that period, which was antecedent to the 
establishment of the Roman power here, the trade of 
the island is said to have been very considerable. 

* The following passage from Carte is too remarkable to be 
here left unnoticed— "The Massylians tempted by the like hopes 
of gain, and in order to share with the Phoenicians in the advantages 
of a commerce with these parts of the world, sent, about two hun- 
dred and fifty years before Christ, Pytheas, one of their citizens, to 
make a discovery of all the coasts of the ocean towards the north, 
beyond the streights of Gibraltar. This ancient geographer 
having coasted along Spain, Gaul, and Britain, examining the 
situation and condition of the ports in his way, proceeded at last 
as far north as Iceland ; and on his return, published a history 
of this last island, under the name of Thule ; with an account of 
the countries he had visited, and the observations he had made 
in his voyage. This work is now unhappily lost, except a few 
passages of it, quoted by Polybius and others, which only serve 
to raise our curiosity for the rest, and to heighten our regret for 
having undergone a fate common to it with the writings of other 
Greeks, who seem to have known more of these islands in and 
before the age of this Pytheas, than either they or the Romans 
did afterwards upon the discontinuance of the Phoenician trade, 
till the time of Caesar's expedition. " — Carte's Gen. Hist, of 
Engl. Vol. i. p. 38. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 273 

" Two roads were laid across it, and reached from 
Sandwich to Caernarvon on one side, and from 
Dorsetshire to Suffolk on the other ; and the com- 
merce of the shores was carried along them into 
the interior parts of the country. The great staple 
of the tin was no longer settled in a distant part of 
the island, It was removed from Scilly and settled 
in the isle of Wight, a central part of the coast, 
lying equally betwixt the two roads, and better 
adapted to the new arrangements of the trade, 
thither the tin was brought by the Belgse, and 
thither the foreign merchants resorted with their 
wares ; and the trade was no longer carried on by 
vessels that coasted tediously along the shores of 
Spain and Gaul. The tin was now transported over 
the neighbouring channel, unshipped on the oppo- 
site coast, and sent upon horses across the land, or 
by boats along the rivers to Marseilles and Nar- 
bonne. In this state of the British commerce, the 
commodities imported into the island were earthen- 
ware, salt, and brass, both wrought and in bullion : 
and the tin was not, as it had been originally, the 
only export of the island. It still remained the prin- 
cipal article of our foreign trade. But with it were 
exported gold, -silver, iron, and lead ; hides, cattle, 
corn, and slaves ;* dogs, gems, and muscle-pearls ; 



* Slaves continued to be one of the articles of British export, 
not only while paganism predominated, but even for a great many 
ages after the nation thought proper to make a profession of 
Christianity. 



274 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

polished horse-bits of bone, horse-collars, amber toys, 
and glass vessels."* 

Such, our historian continues, was the nature of 
our foreign traffic, when the Romans settled among 
us : and it instantly received a considerable im- 
provement from them. This appears from that very 
remarkable circumstance in the interior history of the 
island, the sudden rise and commercial importance of 
London, within a few years after their settlement in 
the country. The trade was no longer carried on by 
the two great roads on the southern shore, or the 
staple continued in the Isle of Wight. The principal 
commerce still appears to have been confined to the 
south, and to the counties of Middlesex, Kent, South- 
ampton and Sussex. But it was also diffused over 
the whole extent of the Roman conquests, and 
carried on directly from the western or the eastern 
shores, as well as the southern. New ports were 
opened on every side of the island, most of them in- 
deed about the southern angle of it, but some along 
the eastern and the western coasts. Thus Middlesex 
had the port of London ; Kent, the ports of Rhutupae. 
Dubris, and Lemanis ; Sussex, those of Adurnum, 
Andereda, and Novus ; and Hampshire that of Mag- 
nus. Yorkshire also on one side had its port, Felix, 
and Lancashire on the other, its port, Sistuntian. 
These were evidently the commercial harbours of the 
Roman Britons. The articles introduced into the 
island at Sheen, in addition to those previously 

* Whitaker's Manchester, Book l.Chap. xi. 8vo. edit. vol. ii. 
p. 168—173. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 275 

mentioned, are said by our sagacious author to 
comprehend sugar, pepper, ginger, writing-paper, 
and perhaps some other similar commodities. The 
Sacharum, or sugar of the Romans, he observes, like 
our own, was the extracted honey of a cane, brought 
from Arabia or India, and used only for medical 
purposes. The articles sent out of the island, he 
adds, must have been partly the same as before, with 
the addition of gagates or jet, the British being the 
best and most abundant in Europe, and of the silvery 
marl of Kent and Essex, which was shipped off for 
the marshy countries on the Rhine; bears for the 
foreign amphitheatres, baskets, salt, corn and oysters. 
Lead, cattle, and hides are also mentioned. British 
dogs too are said to have been a very gainful traffic 
to the Romans. And as the interior parts of Britain, 
then beginning to be turned up by the plough, would 
produce at first the most luxuriant harvests, so the 
whole island freighted no fewer than eight hundred 
vessels with corn every year for the continent.* 
These, Mr. Whitaker observes, were the multiplied 
advantages which our British ancestors received from 
the settlement of the Romans among them. The 

* The authorities adduced in support of the facts specified in 
the above long paragraph, are those of Tacit. Ann. Lib. xiv. c. 
33; Antonin. Iter. 3 and 4; Ricard. Iter. 15; Notitia, Ptolem. 
Richard, p. 27 ; Antonin. and Ricard. ibid; Ricard. p. 27. and 18. 
and Iter. \5 ; Plin. Lib. xii. c. 8 ; Solinus, c. 22 ; Martial, Lib. 
Spect. Ep. 7. and Lib. xiv. E. 9. 99; Camden, p. 194; Ju- 
venal, Sat. 4. and Camden, p. 2 ; Reinesius, p. 190, and Gale's 
Antoninus, p. 43 ; Gratius, p. 26 ; Camden, p. 2 ; &c. The facts 
in the preceding paragraphs rest on similar authorities. 



27G 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 



mechanical arts, that had been previously pursued in 
the country, were considerably improved ; and arts 
before unknown were brought into it. The varied 
treasures of our soil were now first discovered, or 
better collected. Our societies were combined into 
cities, our manners refined into politeness, and our 
minds enlightened with learning ; agriculture, manu- 
factures and commerce, were established among us. 
These were considerable advantages, but they were 
attended by another, greatly superior to them all. 
This was that momentous event, the introduction of 
Christianity,* of which some account will be given 
in another chapter. 



Chapter IV. 

On the ancient invasions of this country ; especially those con- 
ducted by the Romans : causes and effects of the latter. 

It is generally thought that Julius Caesar and the 
Romans were not the first invaders of this island. 
Carte will have it that Divitiacus, a king of Soissons, 
invaded and subdued some part of it, twenty or 
thirty years anterior to Caesar's memorable expe- 
ditions.^ The settlement of the Belgae in this 
country, at a still earlier period, is also thought to 

* See Whitaker, as before, 75—79. 
+ Gen. Hist, of Engl. Vol. 1 . p. 26. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 277 

have been in consequence of an invasion. The same 
would seem to have been the case with yet more 
early settlers, such as the Coraniaid, y Ddraig 
Estren, and others. But of these ancient invasions, 
very little can be said with any certainty. The 
Roman invasion, on the contrary, is an event of great 
notoriety, of which a very particular account has 
been transmitted to us from that extraordinary and 
celebrated individual, who was himself the very pro- 
jector and conductor of it. 

The reason which Caesar gives for undertaking the 
invasion of the country is, the assistance the Britons 
had afforded to their Gallic neighbours in their wars 
with the Romans.* It probably might appear to 
him a sufficient reason ; but in the eyes of strict 
justice it can have but very little weight. It is, 
however, much like the reasons that are generally 
advanced by heroes and conquerors in justification of 
their violent and destructive proceedings. 

Our triads seem to give some degree of countenance 
to the fact, that the Gauls had received assistance 
from this country. They even assert that Cassi- 
velaunus, or Caswallon, went over himself to Gaul, 
and appeared there at the head of sixty thousand 
men ; and moreover, that he fought against a body 
of Caesar's allies, and killed six thousand of them. 
But with this the triads connect a very odd story, 
making it the chief object of Cassivelaunus's ex- 
pedition, to recover his mistress, Flur, whom Mar- 
chan, a Gallic prince of Gascony, had surreptitiously 



* De Bell. Gall. lib. iv. c. 8. 



278 HISTORY OP THE BRITONS. 

seized, with a view of presenting her to Caesar. In 
consequence of his victory, the story says, he re- 
covered his mistress. This is so romantic a tale that 
one hardly knows what to make of it. The ingenious 
author of the " Mythology and Rites of the British 
Druids" does not hesitate to allegorize, or rather 
mythologize it. " The character of Flur," says he, 
" imports that token or pledge of union, amongst the 
professors of Druidism, which induced the Britons to 
assist their brethren of Gaul, as related by Caesar, 
and thus furnished that great commander with a pre- 
text for the invasion of this island."* 

This was Caesar's ostensible reason for invading 
this country. But he had doubtless other reasons 
and other motives, which weighed no less if they did 
not preponderate. No Roman general had ever 
before thought of conquering or invading Britain. 
That country was looked upon as belonging in a 
manner to another world ; and could Caesar but sub- 
due it and add it to the Roman empire, it needed 
no great sagacity to discover that it would highly 
gratify his ambition, and add considerably to his 
fame in the opinion of the Roman people. These 
were momentous matters in the eyes of such a man 
as Caesar, and they sufficiently account for his pro- 
cedures against this country, which he repeatedly 
attempted to reduce under the power and annex to 
the empire of the Romans. Caesar's first attempt 
was unsuccessful ; nor does it appear that the second 



* Page 447,448, 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 279 

afforded him much reason for boasting. Even some 
of his own countrymen thought he had quite enough 
of it ; and many have been of opinion that he never 
was more roughly handled than on British ground. 
It does seem however that he did gain a few ad- 
vantages the second time, and that our ancestors, for 
the sake of getting rid of him, made some humiliating 
or conciliatory professions, and perhaps promised the 
payment of something in the shape of tribute. But 
we have seen no clear evidence of its having been 
regularly paid for any length of time. Nor do we 
find that the Romans had any intercourse with 
Britain, except in a commercial way, from Caesar's 
last departure, which was nearly sixty years before 
the birth of Christ, till the reign of Claudius, an 
interval of about a hundred years. 

In Claudius's reign, Britain experienced another 
Roman invasion, which proved more successful than 
the former ; and a great part of the island, after long 
and severe struggles, was reduced to the state of a 
Roman province. The country was soon held by the 
conquerors in high estimation, and regarded as one 
of their most valuable acquisitions. Several of the 
emperors honoured it with their presence, and their 
armies here were commanded by some of their most 
able and renowned generals. 

The face of the country in the meantime assumed 
a different appearance, and the progress of improve- 
ment soon became rapid and extensive. Large tracts, 
formerly covered with thickets and forests, were now 
cleared and converted into cultivated fields, producing 
abundant crops of the finest corn, which besides 



280 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

supplying the wants of the inhabitants, afforded a 
large surplus for foreign markets. Marshes also were 
drained, and the low lands near the sea, usually 
overflowed by the salt water, were secured by strong 
embankments, and effectually converted into good 
pasturage and arable lands. The whole country 
was likewise intersected with excellent roads, which 
were formed with immense skill and labour, made 
with the best and most durable materials, and often 
carried through extensive and almost impassable mo- 
rasses. 

Instead of the rude towns of former times, con- 
sisting of mere huts and hovels, numerous cities now 
sprung up, adorned with baths, amphitheatres, and 
all the insignia of Italian luxury and refinement. 
Ample means were also furnished for the cultivation 
of Roman literature, of which the higher ranks 
appear to have very generally availed themselves. 
All classes soon assumed the manners of their con- 
querors, and became as much Romanized as any one 
of the nations they had previously subdued. To 
crown the whole, Christianity appears to have been 
introduced among our ancestors, at an early period 
of their connexion with the Romans, under the 
auspices of Bran ap Llyr and his family, who had 
embraced that religion during their long residence 
at Rome. But what sort of Christianity it was that 
they did then profess and introduce among their 
countrymen, may admit of some question ; for there 
were certainly two kinds of Christianity from the 
very first, as dissimilar to each other as light and 
darkness. This, however, is a point that has been 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 281 

but little attended to ; nor is this a proper place in 
which to enter upon the discussion of it. 

But of whatever sort that Christianity was which 
Bran and his family introduced among our ancestors, 
there is no reason to suppose that it met with general 
acceptance, or that the whole nation was converted 
to the belief and profession of it. It will not be very 
easy to prove that Christianity in any form was here 
a national and established religion before the days of 
Constantine ; if indeed before those of the memor- 
able monk, Austin. Many absurd assertions have 
often been made, and readily credited by multitudes ; 
about the state of Christianity among the ancient 
Britons, at the same time they have not had the least 
foundation in truth, but have merited all possible 
contempt. This subject however must not here be 
enlarged upon. 

The preceding hints exhibit some of the effects 
which the Roman conquest produced in this island, 
and may help us to judge whether that memorable 
revolution increased or diminished the former sum of 
national happiness and respectability. It will be 
necessary, ere we attempt to form an estimate, to add 
a few circumstances to those which have been already 
stated. We notice chiefly instances of national ad- 
vantage and improvement, which were the result 
of that great change. But it also produced effects 
of a very different and opposite description; the 
national character was degraded, the liberty and 
independence of the country were completely anni- 
hilated, the nation was drained of the choicest of its 
youth, who were forced into militarv service, and 



282 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

employed in foreign wars, while multitudes of the 
common people were constrained to labour like slaves 
in the most servile occupations, belonging to public 
works carried on in different parts of the country ; 
Of this they would sometimes most grievously com- 
plain. In short, all public spirit, and all generous 
and dignified feeling were utterly destroyed. 

Upon the whole, therefore, after a careful exam- 
ination of both sides of the question, it seems pretty 
clear that the Britons lost more than they gained, by 
their connexion with the Romans; and that the 
latter left this island, as was hinted before, in a much 
less happy and much less exalted condition than that 
in which they found it. 



Chapter V. 



Of the geography of Roman Britain, or the principal divisions 
of the country during the government of the Romans : — with 
some additional observations. 



An account has already been given of the ancient 
divisions of Britain, as they existed previously to the 
arrival of the Romans. Before we conclude the pre- 
sent sketch, it may not be improper briefly to notice 
those new divisions which took place under the di- 
rection of that celebrated people. 

No one perhaps understood this subject better than 
Whitaker ; we cannot therefore do amiss in placing 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 283 

ourselves here chiefly under his guidance. — " The 
Roman conquests among us were divided," says he, 
" in general into higher or Western, and lower or 
Eastern Britain, the one being separated from the 
other by a line that was carried through the length of 
the island. They were also divided in particular into 
six provinces, and distinguished by the six denomi- 
nations of Britannia Prima, Britannia Secunda, Flavia, 
Maxima, Valentia, and Vespasiana. And a regular 
itinerary, the first perhaps of Britain, appears to have 
been drawn up by Lollius for the whole."* 

I. Britannia Prima comprehended all the country 
that lies to the south of the Thames and of the Severn, 
and of a line drawn from Cricklade or its vicinity 
upon the one, to Berkeley or its neighbourhood on 
the other. It included eleven nations of the Britons, 
and contained about thirty-six stations, subject to 
Ritupse or Richborough, the provincial capital. 

II. Britannia Secunda comprized all the country 
that lies between the Severn and the Dee, contained 
three tribes of the Britons, and reckoned about twenty 
stations under Isca, or Caerleon, its capital. The 
three tribes it comprehended were, 1. The Silures, 
who originally inhabited the counties of Hereford, 
Radnor and Monmouth, and the eastern part of Gla- 
morganshire, with the portions of the counties of Glou- 
cester and Worcester lying on the west of the Severn. 
Caerwent was their metropolis. — 2. The Ordovices, 
who inhabited the counties of Montgomery, Merio- 



Hist. Manchester, 1, 92, 8vo. ed. 



284 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

neth, Carnarvon, Denbigh, and Flint, and those parts 
of Shropshire which are to the south and west of 
the Severn, to which may be added Mona, or the Isle 
of Anglesey. — 3. The Dimetae inhabited the counties 
of Pembroke, Cardigan, Caermarth en, and Brecknock, 
with the western part of Glamorganshire. Maridu- 
num or Caermarthen was their metropolis. 

III. Flavia, or Flavia Caesariensis, took in all the 
central regions of the island, was limited by the two 
other provinces on the south and west, and by the 
Humber, the Don, and the Mersey, on the north, and 
had about eight tribes and fifty stations within it. 
Cirencester, Leicester, Lincoln, Caster, by Norwich ; 
Colchester, Verulam, and London, were among the 
principal towns of this province. 

IV. Maxima, or Maxima Caesariensis, compre- 
hended all the region which was bounded by the two 
seas, the wall of Hadrian on the north, and the 
Mersey, the Don, and the Humber, on the south ; 
being the present counties of Durham and Westmore- 
land together with Yorkshire and Cumberland, except 
two small parts of each. Of this province York was 
the metropolis, if it were not also that of all the Roman 
possessions in Britain. 

The 5th and 6th divisions, or provinces, i. e. 
Valentia and Vespasiana, were situated in the nor- 
thern parts of Britain, about and beyond the great 
walls ; and they were always held by the Romans on 
a very precarious tenure, as the hardy northern tribes 
were often apt to dispute their right to them : and 
on the decline of the Roman power, and for some 
time before the final departure of that people, they 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 285 

appear to have been rapidly losing ground in those 
northern parts. They had been at vast pains in 
erecting mighty walls and fortifications across the 
country, in different quarters of those northern pro- 
vinces, as a protection from the cruel depredations of 
the hostile Caledonians. They often proved however 
but a feeble and insecure defence ; and when the 
legions were withdrawn they were never afterwards 
of any real benefit. 

With the extinction of the Roman power in Britain 
the above geographical or provincial divisions of the 
island also ceased for ever; and they were subse- 
quently to be traced only in the Iters, or Itineraries 
of Ptolemy, Antonine, and other ancient geographers. 
The face of the country in succeeding times assumed 
other forms, and exhibited very different lines of de- 
marcation. Under the Saxons, England was at first 
divided into seven kingdoms, which were subsequently 
reduced to one. Alfred after that divided the kingdom 
into counties, which division is still continued ; though 
the disproportion or inequality of size which some of 
them exhibit, makes what may be called a prepos- 
terous and whimsical appearance ; the counties of 
Huntingdon and Rutland, for instance, compared with 
those of York and Lincoln. The pope also and his 
agents, divided the country into two ecclesiastical 
provinces, twenty-six dioceses, and about ten thousand 
parishes. But these divisions are foreign to our pre- 
sent design, and are here noticed only incidentally. 

Towards the latter part, and in the decline of the 
power and sovereignty of the Romans in this island, 
their military force became greatly reduced, owing 



28G HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

to the increasing dangers that threatened them nearer 
home, and even in Italy itself; which made it neces- 
sary to recall all the troops that could be spared from 
the distant provinces. The slender force that remained 
in this island was then chiefly stationed on the 
northern or Caledonian frontier, being the quarter 
from which most danger was apprehended. This 
left most of the other coasts in a defenceless state ; 
which being known to the Irish they very soon took 
advantage of it. " Apprized," says Whitaker, " of 
the new military arrangements, and stimulated with 
the inviting prospect of conquest, they resolved upon 
an expedition against the whole western coast of 
England." 

This event took place, as the same writer informs 
us, in the year 395, during the minority of Honorius, 
and the regency of Stilicho, and under the conduct 
of Neil Na Gaillac, monarch of the Irish, who raised 
on that occasion the whole united power of his king- 
dom. This formidable assemblage or armament of 
Irish marauders, after having quitted their own ports, 
" ranged with their numerous navy along the coast 
of Lancashire, landed in the Isle of Man, and reduced 
it. They then made a descent upon North Wales, 
and subdued a considerable portion of the country. 
They disembarked a body of their troops in the do- 
minions of the Dimetse, and conquered the greatest 
part of them : and they afterwards extended their 
arms to the southern channel. This unexpected inva- 
sion, however, was soon afterwards repelled by forces 
sent over by Stilicho, and joined by a large body of the 
provincials, legionary citizens, and original Britons, 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 287 

under the command of Canedag (Canedda) monarch 
of the Ottadini." Our historian further informs us, 
that the invaders were attacked, defeated, and driven 
to their ships, with so great a carnage that they 
never afterwards attempted any descents of conquest 
upon our western coasts.* But the period had now 



* Such is the substance of Whitaker's account of that memorable 
event; and it seems to be in the main, and as far as it goes, tole- 
rably correct. It is here introduced on account of the enormous 
evils which this conquest brought upon the Welsh people, and 
which must have far exceeded all other calamities that had be- 
fallen them, during the whole period of their connexion with the 
Romans. Where the above battle was fought does not appear. 
It probably took place in some part of the west of England, to 
which those marauders had extended their depredations ; in this 
case it might terminate, as above described, in their total over- 
throw and complete expulsion from the country, so as to disable 
them from ever making a similar attempt upon that coast. But 
it does not appear that they were so soon driven out of Wales. 
On the contrary, it seems that they maintained their ground there 
for nearly fifty years longer, when they were entirely expelled by 
the natives, aided by Urien Rheged and the sons of Canedda, 
who afterwards took up their residence in that country, and be- 
came the ancestors of some of its present most distinguished fa- 
milies. — Here it may be just hinted, that there now exist in Wales 
some plain and strong indications of an Irish predominance, of some 
continuance, over that country, at some former period, for which 
there appears no way of accounting satisfactorily, but by advert- 
ing to this portion of British history. It may be also further noticed 
that the people of Wales were now treated with such brutal in- 
dignity by their Irish masters, that some of them were actually 
carried into captivity. One of the number was Padrig the son of 
Mawon, alias Padrig Maenwyn of Gowerland, commonly called 
Saint Patrick, who is said to have been then carried captive into 
Ireland, where he afterwards became the celebrated apostle and 
illuminator of that country. See Cambr. Biogr. art. Padrig. 



288 HISTOKY OF THE BUTTONS. 

arrived (adds our historian) that the Roman empire, 
having- done the great work for which it was erected 
by Providence, was to be demolished for ever. God 
summoned the savage nations of the north to come 
and erase the mighty structure of their empire, and 
avenge the injuries of the nations around them. 
The Roman legionaries, once the invincible of the 
earth, now retired on every side towards the heart of 
the empire : and Rome, once the tyrant of the world, 
daily shrunk into herself; contracting the dimensions 
of her territories, and losing the formidableness of 
her name. In this awful crisis the Roman soldiers 
finally deserted the island of Britain, in the year of 
the Christian era 446 ; five hundred and one years 
after their first descent upon the island, and four hun- 
dred and three after their settlement in the country."* 



Chapter VI. 

Conclusion. — Sketch of the state and government of the Bri- 
tish provinces and towns under the Romans; also of the le- 
gionaries and colonists. Effects of the Roman conquest and 
government on the state of the country, and on the national 
character. 

The Roman empire was generally divided into pro- 
vinces, each of which was governed by its own Prae- 
tor and Quasstor ; the former was charged with the 



* Whitaker, 6. 1, ch. 12, oct. ed. 265—269, also Carte 1. 
169. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 289 

whole administration of the government, and the 
latter deputed to manage the finances under him. 
This was the case in this island. The conquered 
regions of Britain, as we have seen, were divided 
into six provinces ; and those provinces were governed 
by six praetors and the same number of quaestors. 
Each province formed a distinct government. They 
all acknowledged one head within the island, and 
were all subject to the authority of the proconsul, 
legate, or vicar of Britain. 

The praetor always resided in the chief town of the 
province. There was his mansion-house denominated 
Palatium, or Domus Palatina, by the Romans. 
In this was assembled the principal court of justice ; 
judicial determinations were made by the praetor, 
and imperial decrees and praetorial edicts promulged 
by his ministers. Other courts were opened under 
his commission in the other towns of the province, 
in which his deputies presided, inferior causes were 
determined, and the decrees and edicts equally pro- 
mulgated. Each praetor had many of these deputies 
under him, as each province had many of these towns. 
Britannia Prima comprised about forty, Britannia 
Secunda fifteen, Flavia fifty, Valentia ten, and Maxi- 
ma twenty-five. Britain, from the southern sea to 
the Friths of Forth and Clwyd, at the close of the 
first century, had about a hundred and forty towns 
in all. 

These towns were of various degrees. They 
differed greatly from each other, not merely in the 
rank of their civil estimation, but even in the nature 
of their constitutions. They were particularly dis- 

u 



290 HISTORY Of THE BRITONS. 

tinguished into the four orders of towns, municipal, 
stipendiary, colonies, and cities, invested with the 
Latin privileges. Most of them were probably 
stipendiary, i.e. tributary, or tribute-paying; and as 
such were subject to all the provincial regimen. 
Each was governed by a particular commandant, 
the deputy of the praetor, a merely annual officer. 
This praefect acted as an aedile, and therefore had 
the whole praetorial authority over the town and its 
vicinity, or dependences, delegated to him. But the 
garrison in the station must have been independent 
of him, and subject immediately to the praetorial 
authority. Like the praetor, he had his quaestor 
with him, appointed, no doubt, by the provincial 
quaestor, and authorised to receive the taxes of the 
town. These officers, in the Roman government, 
made a very conspicuous appearance. By the former 
was all the discipline of the civil polity regulated, 
while all the taxation economy was adjusted by the 
latter. 

The payments assessed on the provincial Britons 
consisted of four or five different articles : one was an 
impost upon burials, which is particularly urged as 
a grievance by the spirited Boadicea. Another was 
a capitation tax, which is likewise insisted upon by 
that British heroine. A third was a cess upon lands, 
which amounted to two shillings in the pound, or a 
tenth of the annual produce in every thing that was 
raised from seed, and four shillings, or a fifth, on all 
that was raised from plants. A fourth was an im- 
post on cattle. All the commercial imports and 
exports were subject to particular charges. Such in 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 291 

general were the taxes of our British ancestors under 
the government of the Romans ; and as they were 
the badges of the Roman dominion, they were natu- 
rally disliked by a recently conquered people ; and 
embittered as these demands must have been to their 
minds, by the natural haughtiness and insolence of 
a victorious soldiery, they were necessarily hated by 
a brave and high-spirited nation. But they were 
not oppressive in themselves ; perhaps they were no 
more than an equivalent for the burdens that had 
formerly been laid upon the Britons by their own 
governments. The amount of them probably was 
scarcely sufficient to answer the expenses of the civil 
and military establishments in the island. The 
burden was evidently inconsiderable, and the small - 
ness of the collections at last stimulated the policy of 
avarice to abolish all the provincial taxes, and sub- 
stitute even the Roman in their stead. 

In this general condition of our towns, some were 
raised above the common rank by the communication 
of the Jus Latii, or the Latin privilege. This was 
an exemption from the ordinary jurisdiction of the 
praetor ; and the inhabitants of a Latin town were no 
longer governed by a foreign praefect and a foreign 
quaestor, but by a praefect and a quaestor elected 
among themselves. A Briton was their praefect, a 
Briton was their justiciary, and a Briton was their 
tax-gatherer. Every inhabitant of such a town that 
had borne the office of praetor or quaestor, was imme- 
diately entitled to the privilege of a Roman citizen. 
These rights the Romans first communicated to the 
conquered Latins, and afterwards extended to all the 



292 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

Italians. Caesar seems to have been the first that 
carried them beyond the bounds of Italy, and con- 
ferred them upon a provincial town. Novum Comum, 
certainly, and probably Nemansis, in Gaul, received 
this distinction from him, and were, perhaps, the 
first provincial towns that received it. It was subse- 
quently bestowed upon several of our cities in Britain ; 
such as Durnomagus or Caster, near Peterborough, 
Ptoroton or Inverness, Victoria or Perth, Theodosia 
or Dunbarton, Lugubalia or Carlisle, and Sorbiodu- 
num or Salisbury, Corinium or Cirencester, Catarac- 
ton or Caterick in Yorkshire, Cambodunum or Slack in 
Longwood, and Coccium or Blackrode in Lancashire. 

These were the names and these the constitutions 
of the towns which were inhabited principally by the 
Britons. But there were others which were chiefly 
possessed by the Romans, and had therefore a very 
different polity. These were colonies and municipies. 

The commencement of the Roman colonies was 
nearly coeval with that of the Roman conquests. 
But the first that was planted in any of the pro- 
vinces was projected by the genius of Caius Gracchus, 
and settled upon the site of the memorable Carthage. 
Others were established on the same principle in 
Britain; Claudius, settling a strong body of legionary 
veterans at Camulodunum or Colchester, the first of 
all the Roman colonies in Britain, founded also, 
together with the succeeding legates, no fewer than 
eight others in different quarters of the island, at 
Richborough, London, Gloucester, Bath, Caerleon 
on Usk, Chesterford near Cambridge, Lincoln, and 
Chester. 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 293 

That colony was esteemed the head-quarters of the 
legion, where some of the principal cohorts were 
lodged, the eagle was reposited, and the commander 
was resident. Such was Deva, for the twentieth 
Valerian Victorious ; Eboracum, for the sixth Victori- 
ous ; Caerleon, the second Augustan ; and Glevum, 
for the seventh Twin Claudian. The rest were peo- 
pled by the other cohorts of those legions : so Caer- 
leon, London, and Richborough, were all peopled by 
those of the second Augustan ; and the tenth Antonian 
was lodged in the common stations, as the tenth 
legion had three, the twelfth five, and the twenty- 
second six, in Germany and Gaul. Thus were large 
bodies of the soldiery kept together by the Romans, 
at Richborough, London, Colchester, Chesterford, 
Lincoln, and York, along the eastern side of the 
island ; and at Bath, Gloucester, Caerleon, and 
Chester, upon the western ; ready at once to sup- 
press any insurrection at home, and repel any invasion 
from abroad. The Roman legionaries lived together 
without any great intermixture of the natives ; allow- 
ing few probably to reside with them, excepting the 
useful traders and necessary servants. 

As their government was partly civil, the legionary 
colonists were subject to the Roman laws, were ruled 
by their own senators or decuriones, and enjoyed all 
the privileges of Roman citizens. As it was equally 
military, they strengthened their towns with regular 
fortifications, and guarded them with regular watches, 
had their names retained on the quarter-master's 
roll, and were obliged to march at the general's 
command. But as in a series of years, the males in 



294 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

the colonies would necessarily increase, and as they 
were all of them legionaries by birth, upon any 
military exigence a draught would be made out of 
the colonists, and such a number levied as was 
requisite for the occasion. And these towns naturally 
assumed the names of the legions to which the 
colonists belonged, frequently accompanying, and 
sometimes superseding their British appellations. 

The Roman yoke appears not to have been borne 
very patiently at first by our ancestors. But at a 
subsequent period they became better reconciled to 
it, and a good understanding took place between them 
and their masters. Whitaker observes, that the 
privilege of Roman citizenship was frequently com- 
municated to individuals among the Britons, and at 
last bestowed upon all of them. In the towns dis- 
tinguished by the Latin liberties, as before observed, 
it became the common right of all that had borne the 
offices of sedile or quaestor in them. But when 
Antoninus Pius was invested with the imperial 
authority, these narrow restraints were taken away, 
and the Roman citizenship was extended to every 
Briton of property and worth, — it ought to have been 
extended to all, and the cunning avarice of Caracalla 
communicated what the virtuous wisdom of Pius 
should have bestowed. By this act the lower orders of 
Britons were released from a disgraceful punishment, 
and no longer liable to be scourged with rods. The 
higher were rescued from a disgraceful exclusion, and 
admitted to a participation of marriages and a com- 
munion of honours with the Romans. All the inhabi- 
tants being now created citizens of Rome, were placed 



HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 295 

on a footing of equality with their Roman masters, 
empowered to elect their own officers, and left at 
liberty to be governed by their own townsmen.* From 
this it may be justly inferred that the Romans 
granted only what they were afraid or were unable 
to withhold. 

Notwithstanding we have shewn, in the former 
part of this sketch, that the Britons, when Caesar 
visited them, were not in that rude and barbarous 
state which many have supposed, yet it must be 
confessed that the country received many important 
improvements in consequence of its becoming a part 
of the Roman empire. The arts of civil and social 
life, with all the learning and knowledge which dis- 
tinguish the Roman people, were soon introduced 
among our ancestors, and had a wonderful effect on 
the state of the country and the character of the 
nation. New towns were built, many in number, 
and on an improved plan; and new roads were 
formed to facilitate the mutual intercourse of those 
towns, as well as that of the different parts of the 
country. Woods and forests were cleared, fens and 
morasses drained, and salt or sea marshes embanked, 
agriculture, trade, and commerce universally encou- 
raged, and surprisingly advanced. Such super- 
abundance of corn was produced that nearly a thou- 

* For a fuller display of the statements given in this chapter, 
and the authorities by which they are supported and substan- 
tiated, the reader is referred to Whitaker's Manchester, book i. 
chap. viii. from which they have been here extracted and occa- 
sionally abridged, owing to the writer's opinion of their general 
authenticity and correctness. 



296 HISTORY OF THE BRITONS. 

sand sail of ships are said to have been employed in 
exporting it to foreign countries. In short, this 
island appears to have been, while connected with 
the Romans, justly considered as a very important 
part of their empire ; and whatever obligations our 
ancestors were laid under to their Roman masters, for 
promoting the improvement of the country, or on 
any other account, it is pretty certain that they were 
all amply repaid by the numerous and valuable 
benefits which the imperial government derived from 
the country. 

At the same time it is impossible to look without 
concern and shame upon the frivolity and dissipation 
which the Romans were but too diligent and too 
successful in introducing among our ancestors. The 
effect on the national character seems to have been 
most unhappy. It may account for the degenerate 
appearance which the Britons exhibited on the de- 
parture of the Roman legions, so very different from 
that which they manifested when the Romans first 
assailed their country, and when the invaders were 
so gallantly resisted under the magnanimous conduct 
of Caractacus. In fine, it is sufficiently evident that 
when the Romans withdrew themselves from this 
island, they left it in a considerably worse condition 
than that in which they found it. 



297 



A SHORT ACCOUNT OF A VISIT TO THE NORTH 
OF IRELAND IN THE YEAR 1787. 

Monday, July 15tb, 1787. 

Left Isle of Whithorn at four p. m.; travelled through 
byways to the beach near Phisgall ; found the lanes 
not the pleasantest in the world, especially near the 
shore, where the steepness of the precipices and the 
ruggedness of the roads might have occasioned a 
stumble that possibly would have been our last. 
Launched the small boat a prodigious distance over 
a very stony strand, got it at last afloat, and found 
ourselves on board about seven o'clock. The wind 
tolerably fair, and the water smooth. Sailed all 
night round the Mull of Galloway, Port Patrick, and 
Kirkholm ; made Loch Ryan before break of day. 
The little town of Stranraer at the bottom of the 
bay, the hills to the east and west, studded with ele- 
gant mansions, amidst hanging woods and cultivated 
glens, formed a scene truly beautiful. 

Tuesday, 16th. — Had, in passing, a fine view of 
the seat of the late Countess Dowager of Galloway. 
The situation not unpleasant, and the fields around 
manifesting the hand of cultivation, and bearing 
every promise of future improvement. Steered out 
of the Loch by eleven. Saw the rock of Ailsa at a 
distance : it appeared like a large sugar loaf, inha- 
bited solely by solan geese and other species of 



298 VISIT TO IRELAND. 

waterfowl, which, in all probability, will not be dis- 
turbed in the possession of it. Encountered a very 
rough sea, and such weather as is not usual at this 
season of the year. Touched Sanda Isle, and the 
Mull of Cantire, and came to anchor in Church Bay, 
in the island of Rathlin. The chalky cliffs of this 
island, with their venerable covering of brown rock, 
form a very picturesque object from the sea. Went 
ashore; found a church without a roof, a gentleman 
(Mr. Gage, the sole proprietor of the island) without 
a house, and a number of sick without a physician. 
Here is a clergyman of the Church of England, who 
lives in a decent parsonage house, and is on good 
terms with his flock, besides a Roman Catholic 
priest. Plantations extensive in some parts ; some 
good sheep walks ; a few scattered fields of corn, 
hemp, and flax. No native quadrupeds, excepting 
rats and mice ; foxes, hares, and rabbits unknown 
here ; horses and sheep extremely small : the former 
very serviceable and surefooted, the latter delicious 
mutton. The inhabitants a simple, industrious and 
honest race, consequently unacquainted with the 
tedious and impoverishing processes of civil law. 

" O fortunatos nimium sua si bona norint!" 

Virg. Georg. ii. 458. 

The language mostly spoken, Irish; the huts 
most wretched, consisting of a few loose stones ce- 
mented with earth, and the miserable looking roofs 
covered with turf. The island* contains a hundred 

* " The island of Rathlin is five miles in length, and one in 
breadth : it contains about two thousand plantation acres ; there 






VISIT TO IRELAND. 299 

and forty families, and about twelve hundred souls ; 
is about five miles in length, and one mile in breadth.f 
Some of the islanders subsist principally by fishing ; 
a few of these came on board as soon as we appeared 
in the bay, to barter dried fish and half starved fowls 
for bread and clothing, but seemed to have very 
little idea of money. Some maintain themselves and 

are in it one hundred and thirty families, and eleven hundred 
inhabitants." — Journals of the Irish House of Commons, 1758. 
[Ed.] 

f " In conversation, they always talk of Ireland as a foreign 
kingdom, and really have scarcely any intercourse with it, except 
in the way of their little trade. Small as the spot is, one can 
nevertheless trace two different characters among its inhabitants. 
The Kenram or western end, is craggy and mountainous ; the 
land in the valleys is rich and well cultivated, but the coast des- 
titute of harbours. A single native is here known to fix his rope 
to a stake driven into the summit of a precipice, and from thence, 
alone and unassisted, to swing down the face of a rock in quest 
of the nests of sea-fowl. From hence, activity, bodily strength, 
and self-dependence are eminent among the Kenramer men. 
Want of intercourse with strangers has preserved many pecu- 
liarities, and their native Irish still continues to be the universal 
language. The Ushet end, on the contrary, is barren in its soil, 
but more open and well supplied with little harbours : hence its 
inhabitants are become fishermen, and are accustomed to make 
short voyages, and to barter. Intercourse with strangers has 
rubbed off many of their peculiarities, and the English language 
is well understood, and generally spoken by them. Near Ushet 
is a lake of fresh water, upwards of a mile in circumference, one 
hundred and forty-four feet above the level of the sea. There is 
also another lake in the opposite end of the island, called Cligan, 
two hundred and thirty-eight feet above the level of the sea. The 
highest hill is called Ken Truan : it is four hundred and forty-four 
feet high. Near Ushet is Doon Point, remarkable for its resem- 
blance to the Causeway ; its pillars have commonly five, six, or 
seven sides." — Dublin Penny Journal for 1833, p. 24. [Ed.] 



300 VISIT TO IRELAND. 

their families by collecting a species of sea weed, 
which, when dried, is manufactured into kelp by a 
process of calcination, and disposed of to linen 
bleachers. There exists sufficient evidence that this 
island was inhabited, and in a state of civilization, 
as early as the commencement of the sixth century. 
Columbus, the celebrated missionary of the north, 
founded a religious establishment here ; and it was 
in the midst of this peaceful calm, while basking in 
the sunshine of pious and domestic retirement, that 
the unoffending inhabitants were invaded and mas- 
sacred # by a cruel horde of northern savages that 
overwhelmed the island. A number of small tumuli 
were, a few years ago, excavated here : within were 
discovered heaps of human bones, a stone coffin, 
brazen swords, spear heads and other curiosities, too 
truly indicating the nature of the scenes that had 
passed on this holy spot. The fortress in which 
Bruce took refuge, when driven out of Scotland at a 
subsequent period, is still visible, and is called after 
his name ' Bruce's Castle/ The fossils found here 
are basalt and limestone. 

Wednesday, 17th. — Weighed anchor and stood for 
Londonderry ; but not seeing any thing of the cutter 
which we wished to accompany thither, and the 
wind dying away, we bore down to the southward, 
and steered into Ballicastle Bay. Ballicastle is a 

* " In the year 795, the northern nations first invaded, and 
desolated the Irish coast, particularly the island of Reeran (Rog- 
hery or Rathlin) which they destroyed with fire and sword, treat- 
ing the professors of Christianity with the utmost cruelty."— Ha- 
milton's Antrim. [Ed.] 



VISIT TO IRELAND. 301 

pretty considerable town, almost entirely the creation 
of one man, a Mr. Boyd, who erected a church and 
a harbour, opened public roads, established manu- 
factories of glass, and collieries — in short, brought 
the town and country to a wonderful state of civili- 
zation and prosperity. He died a few years ago, 
and, what is worse for the inhabitants, public spirit 
died with him ; for its trade and commerce seem no 
longer to flourish. The eastern side of this town 
terminates in the bold promontory of Fairhead, or 
Benmore {Pen mawr*) from its size : between which 
and the town lie the collieries called Tor-head or 
Morlais, in an abrupt bank overhanging the sea; 
but the situation is so open, and the anchorage is so 
precarious, that it is not very convenient for embark- 
ation. The fossils peculiar to the soil are basalt, 
yellow, gray, and white freestone, limestone, a black 
shivery slate. Sailed along shore ; the afternoon 
remarkably fine ; the sky without a cloud, and the 
sea without a ripple ; every object distinctly visible 
for many miles. Came to anchor in Red Bay ; went 
ashore ; the vale fertile and populous, bearing evident 
marks of the hand of man. A prodigious number 
of men employed on the public roads. Few things 
contribute more to the improvement of a country 
than good roads, producing advantage to the hus- 
bandman, and affording encouragement to the tra- 
veller. Cushendall, a small neat village, situated 
in a low valley, encompassed by lofty hills. On the 
west, in a prominent and advantageous situation, 

* Pen-mawr, the Great Head. 



302 VISIT TO IRELAND. 

and on a hill overlooking the village are the remains 
of a very extensive fortification.* The surrounding 
country capable of better cultivation ; but the rod 
of oppression has the effect of checking the progress 
of improvement. Near the shore are many remark- 
able caverns, said to have been formerly the retreats 
of smugglers and pirates. Remained here until it 
was too dark to distinguish objects, so got on board 
again, and sailed for Glenarm Bay, where we found 
the long-expected cutter riding. The wind was 
high during the night. 

Thursday, 18th. — Particularly struck with the ex- 
treme richness and grandeur of the scenery on shore. 
In front the beautiful little village of Glenarm, situ- 
ated in a retired nook, bounded on either side by 
lofty hills, and washed by the sparkling waters of a 
mountain stream. On a commanding bank hard by 
stands a prominent and noble pile of building, bear- 
ing the appearance of a baronial castle j" of the fif- 
teenth century, still inhabited by the Antrim family, 



* This is probably Surg Eden. " Its summit is a flat plain, 
perfectly green, where formerly the great Fin M'Comhall and 
Ossian were lodged within a fortress. There is a mound on the 
summit not unlike a rath called Dun Clanamourne ; or it may 
be Count M'Martin, where there is now a school house." — Guide 
to the Giant's Causeway , p. 63. [Ed.] 

f The approach to it (Glenarm Castle) is by a lofty barbican, 
standing on the northern extremity of the bridge. Passing through 
this, a long terrace, overhanging the river, and confined on the 
opposite side by a lofty, embattled curtain wall, leads through 
an avenue of ancient lime trees to the principal front of the 
building; the appearance of which, from this approach, is very 
impressive. Lofty towers, terminated with cupolas and vanes, 



VISIT TO IRELAND. 303 

whose property it is ; the present earl spends three 
or four months annually here. The entrance is 
through a lofty barbican, and a fine avenue of an- 
cient lime trees : on another side is a romantic glen, 
bounded on the right and on the left by irregular 
walls of basaltic columns rising upwards of two hun- 
dred feet high. In the cemetery adjoining the church 
are the battered remains of an old monastery of 
Franciscan friars. Leaving this spot with regret, 
we sailed back along the same track, and put into 
Cushindun Bay. Landed, walked into the country 
along a pleasant bottom. Met with much civility 
from a Mr. M'Neil, an officer of the customs. Very 
interesting and romantic scenery : the beautiful hill 
of Lurgeidan with its basaltic base and flat summit, 
eleven hundred or twelve hundred feet high, clothed 
with the finest verdure ; the lofty and rugged Tieu- 
buelli rising thirteen hundred or fourteen hundred 
feet. A small mound, near the shore, shewn by 
the natives as the grave of Ossian. A little to the 
N. W. are the remains of a fortification * bearing 

occupy the angles of the building ; the parapets are crowned 
with gables, decorated with carved pinnacles, and exhibiting 
various heraldic ornaments The demesne is well wooded, and 
rather extensive. — Dublin Penny Journal, 1833-4. [Ed.] 

* This perhaps may be Dunmaul Castle. " In the immediate 
vicinity of Garron Point, on an acute prominent headland, ele- 
vated nearly 300 feet above the sea shore, on which it stands, is 
the rock of Dunmaul, on the summit of which are the remains of 
an ancient fort, having various entrenchments . Oral history states 
that in olden time all the rents of Ireland were paid at this place, 
and that the last Danish invaders embarked from hence." — Dublin 
Penny Journal. [Ed.] 



304 VISIT TO IRELAND. 

distinctly the marks of antiquity ; could not learn 
its name. Blowing; hard off shore — the little vessel 
riding in great safety. 

Friday, 19th. — Pursued our course this morning 
in company with the cutter, the ' Royal George ;' 
the wind favourable, but the weather threatening ; 
a competition in sailing between the two cutters 
amused us much ; the encouragement of such matches 
might be productive of considerable public utility. 
Our competitor got much ahead of us by noon. The 
weather moderated. Spoke ' The John of Liverpool,' 
homeward bound from Greenland, with six fish on 
board. A splendid view of the shore and coast, 
jutting headlands of storied columns, sloping pro- 
montories, and quiet harbours, barren hills and 
wooded glens ; in fact, nothing can exceed the ro- 
mantic beauty and chequered variety of the scenery 
before us. The most magnificent and extraordinary 
objects that strike the eye are Benmore, alias Ben- 
ma wr, Carrie a Rede, (Cerrig y Rhyd,) Bengore, 
Bengawr, (Bengafr,^ ) Cape Pleaskin, Dunluce Cas- 
tle, and the Giant's Causeway. Carrie a Rede is an 
insulated rock, eighty feet above the level of the sea, 
and has, no doubt, been separated from the adjacent 
land by some extraordinary operation of nature, and 
is inaccessible on every side but one, where, under 
the shelter of an impending cliff, a luxuriant herbage 
flourishes, and a fisherman's cot is built. To connect 
the fisherman's romantic habitation with the main- 



t Otherwise called the " Goat's PEomontory." Pengafr is 
therefore a very probable etymology. — Ed. 



VISIT TO IRELAND. 



305 



land, without encountering at all times the turbu- 
lence of the tide, a bridge is constructed of cables, 
which are fastened into iron rings mortised into the 
rock on either side. Between these cables is laid a 
number of small planks about a foot wide : these form 
the pathway, while a single hand-rope serves for a 
battlement. The undulations and the frightful height 
of this rude construction do not suggest very com- 
fortable ideas to a tourist who is not reckless of life. 
The gulf to cross is upwards of 60 feet in width, 
and 80 in depth. Bengore, alias Bengafr, or Ben- 
gawr, is a beautiful promontory, not so high as Ben- 
mawr, but is composed of the same materials, as in- 
deed is the whole of the coast for fifty or sixty miles. 
In this promontory is a bay called Port na Spania, so 
named from one of the Spanish Armada having been 
wrecked here. Cape Pleaskin, a beautiful object, 
with its stupendous pillars of variegated basalt, a 
perfect picture ; and the ' Giant's Causeway' with its 
gigantic range of storied pillars, tier above tier, such 
a scene cannot well be imagined by the most enthu- 
siastic mind, and is deserving of the minutest atten- 
tion. Agreed to explore it on a future day. En- 
nistrahul Island on the larboard bow. About 10 
p. m. tacked, and stood for Loch Foyle ; but not know- 
ing the channel, thought it more prudent to lie to all 
night. 

Saturday, 20th. — This morning about 3 o'clock 
a.m. descried a sail, and gave chase, supposing she 
was a smuggler ; discovered her to be a revenue cut- 
ter in chase of us ! Stood for Londonderry. Sailed 
close along shore, and had a good view of this part 

x 



300 VISIT TO IRELAND. 

of the northern coast, Malin Head, Cam, Culdaff, and 
Culdaff House. The wind more favourable andmore 
of it. Several fishing-boats out. These boats are of a 
peculiar form, and are termed Norway skiffs ; they 
bear a rough sea tolerably well, but are top-heavy, 
consequently are often capsized. Heard that two of 
them were a few weeks ago upset in a gale of wind, 
and all hands on board, ten in number, perished. 
One of the boats came alongside of us : we engaged 
one of the fishermen as pilot for half-a-guinea. Ap- 
proached the Tuns, shallow sands at the mouth of the 
Loch, about 9 o'clock. Came to anchor and disem- 
barked. Found the people very rude and inhospit- 
able ; could scarcely procure a draught of milk; could 
not help contrasting this conduct with that of their 
Celtic brethren in Wales. Weighed anchor about 
11 a.m. The wind s.s.w. By working to .wind- 
ward, entered the narrow mouth of the Loch, which 
is about eighteen miles long, and nine broad in the 
widest part. Several handsome residences on either 
side, with not unpleasant prospects. Passed Green 
Castle, and an old ruined fort ; the latter intended, no 
doubt, to guard the harbour. Anchored opposite 
Red Castle, a genteel house, the property of a Mr. 
Carey, about half-way up the Loch. Something 
like a Danish camp on a hill to the eastward ; could 
not ascertain its name. Got into the boat, and made 
for Londonderry. A rowing match between the 
crews of the two cutters entertained us much ; never 
witnessed a match so well contested, even on the 
Thames. They rowed about fourteen miles within 
two hours. Passed Culmore Fort, where, and on the 



VTSIT TO IRFXAND. 307 

opposite side, batteries were planted by the rebel 
armies to intercept any relief designed for the starving 
garrison at Londonderry in 1688.* A little higher is 

* Mr. M'Gregor, in his 'True Stories from the History of 
Ireland,' thus writes of the siege of Derry : " About the middle 
of July, the usual means of subsistence had become so completely 
exhausted, that the flesh of horses, dogs, and vermin, hides, tallow, 
and other nauseous substances, were purchased at extravagant 
prices, and eagerly devoured. At this period, according to 
Walker's Diary, a pound of horse-flesh cost Is. Sd. ; a quarter of 
a dog, 5s. 6d. ; a dog's head, 2s. 6d. ; a cat, 4s. 6d. ; a rat, Is. ; a 
mouse, 6d. ; a pound of greaves, Is.; a pound of tallow, 4s.; a 
pound of salted hides, lOd. ; a quart of horse-blood, Is. ; a quart 
of meal Is. ; a handful of sea- wreck, 2s. Water, which was their 
only drink, was extremely dear, and could not be procured but with 
great danger. But towards the close of the month of July, even 
these miserable resources were nearly exhausted ; and on the 28th 
no means of subsistence could be found for more than two days. 
Still Walker, their clerical governor, assured his famishing and 
ghastly audience from the pulpit, that the Almighty would 
speedily grant them deliverance ; and while his congregation were 
returning from divine service, on the 30th of July, with their 
minds yet warm from a sermon delivered with all the earnestness 
of a man inspired, they discovered three ships in the Lake mak- 
ing way to the town. Kirke, after abandoning them for six weeks, 
having now thought fit, in the extremity of their distress, to make 
a hazardous attempt for their relief. These vessels consisted of 
the Phoenix, Captain Douglas, laden with several hundred bolls 
of meal, and the Mountjoy, Captain Browning, with 135 tons of 
beef, peas, flour and biscuit, under the escort of the Dartmouth 
frigate, commanded by Captain Leake. All eyes were now fixed 
on these interesting objects ; while several cannons were dis- 
charged, and a crimsom flag slowly waved from the steeple of the 
cathedral, to signify the extremity of their distress. Now or never! 
was the simultaneous cry of the emaciated multitude on the walls, 
as the ships approached under an incessant fire from the enemy's 
batteries on both sides of the river. They passed the fort of Cul- 
more without sustaining any material injury ; and the besieged 



308 VISIT TO IRELAND. 

Boom Hall ; opposite, on a narrow part of the river, is 
the memorable spot on which, during the siege, the 
boom was laid across. The boom consisted of strong 
pieces of timber united by iron chains, and strength- 
ened by cables. Arrived at Londonderry.* An ex- 
tensive harbour, with a number of shipping. It is 
rather remarkable that vessels of such size should be 
able to sail up, while the navigation is apparently so 



were filled with transports ofjoy, which were almost instantane- 
ously succeeded by despair, when the Mountjoy, after breaking 
the boom, rebounded with violence, and ran aground, while the 
enemy, rushing in crowds to the water-side, launched their boats 
to board her ; but the Mountjoy, firing a broadside at the enemy, 
rebounded from the shore, and floated again in deep water. Cap- 
tain Douglas, of the Phoenix, was at this time warmly engaged as 
he passed up, on the breaking of the boom by the gallant Brown- 
ing, who, while his ship lay aground, was killed by a musket ball, 
with four of his men. King William settled a pension on his 
widow for her life, and with his own hands placed a chain of gold 
about her neck in presence of the court. The victuallers now 
continued their progress without further molestation up the river ; 
and, at ten o'clock at night, cast anchor at the ship-quay gate, 
amidst the acclamations of the famished garrison and inhabitants, 
and the ringing of bells, intermingled, no doubt, with many a 
pious ejaculation for this providential deliverance. ' For at this 
time,' says Walker, ' we had only nine horses left, and one pint 
of meal to each man. Hunger and fatigue of war had so pre- 
vailed among us, that of 7500 men regimented at the com- 
mencement of the siege, we had now alive but about 4300, of 
whom at least one-fourth part were rendered unserviceable.' 
The besieging army kept up a heavy fire during a great part of 
the night, but at day-break they abandoned the position which, 
for 105 days, they had occupied before Londonderry, having lost 
eight or nine thousand men in their unsuccessful attempts to re- 
duce that city." — [Ed.] 

* " Londonderrv is distant 115 miles from the Castle of Dublin : 



VISIT TO IRELAND. 309 

difficult and insecure, our boats grounded repeatedly. 
The town is pleasantly situated on the river Foyle ; 
has four main streets, and several smaller ; is sur- 
rounded by embattled walls in good repair, about a 
mile long, and eight feet broad, on which grows a 
herb resembling ivy, said to be good for swellings ; 
it is called by the inhabitants pellitory. A pleasant 
walk on the parapets. The 61st regiment of foot 

it consists of four main streets issuing from the exchange, and 
terminating at a gate denominated from the street ; the smaller 
streets and lanes observe a similar arrangement. The streets are 
well paved and lighted. The cathedral is a Gothic building 
erected in the year 1633 : the original tower was lately orna- 
mented with a beautiful spire. The town-hall and market-house 
were erected in the year 1692, over which are the courts of justice, 
occasionally used as a ball-room. The new gaol, the episcopal 
palace, and the linen hall are spacious, and well adapted for 
their respective destinations. The walls, though built in 1614, 
are in very fine repair, and flanked with bastions. The platform 
on the top of the rampart is spacious and covered with a parapet ; 
the quay, and a great portion of the city, are situated outside the 
walls. The harbour is deep, wide, and tolerably secure, as the 
sand banks at the mouth of Loch Foyle do not obstruct the na- 
vigation, there being at all times of the tide fourteen fathoms of 
water in the channel. A very extensive commercial intercourse 
exists between this town, the West Indies, and America. This 
city and its liberties constitute a distinct county, enjoying all the 
privileges attached to such a distinction. Its civil government is 
vested in a mayor, aldermen, recorder, and sheriffs. On the at- 
tainder of O'Neale, the county of Derry was granted by James I. 
to the citizens of London, on stipulation of colonizing the district 
with English settlers, by whom the town was new modelled and 
fortified. It was constituted an episcopal see in the year 1158. 
There were some monastic institutions founded here at a very 
early period. In the year 1790, a very fine wooden bridge was 
erected over the river Foyle, by Mr. Cox, an American. " — The 
Traveller s New Guide through Ireland, 1815. £Ed.] 



310 VISIT TO IRELAND. 

stationed here. The cathedral, which is built in 
the Gothic style, has an ancient appearance, but was 
erected as late as the year 1633. The tower is 
cracked in consequence of two guns having been 
placed on the roof during the siege. 

Sunday, 21st. — This day shamefully and awfully 
profaned. Could not help observing the indecency 
and impiety of publicly offering articles for sale in 
the streets. On inquiry found that the sabbath- 
breakers were mostly Roman Catholics : another 
proof amongst a hundred of the bad effects of inter- 
dicting the Scriptures, of keeping the unhappy people 
in darkness and ignorance ! " Remember the sabbath 
day to keep it holy." " That the soul be without 
knowledge it is not good." Much pleased with the 
service at the cathedral ; excellent music and sing- 
ing, and a crowded congregation. The clergyman 
took his text from Psalm cxlv. 17: "The Lord is 
righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works." 
The preacher observed that mankind might be sen- 
sible of the moral obligations of justice, but that 
they did not always perceive the reasons on which 
they hinged ; or, perceiving them, were unwilling to 
be determined by them: that human justice is liable 
to much obstruction for want of proper evidence, 
and from the obscurity of facts ; and where its evi- 
dence is complete, the intricacy of a case, and the 
specious appearance of probability on either side, 
may render its merits imperceptible ; that even 
where matters are clearest, worldly considerations 
too often pervert the judgment ; prejudices of hatred 
or favour, the solicitations of superiors, or the fasci- 



VISIT TO IRELAND. 311 

nations of bribery may blind the eyes of men of un- 
derstanding, and make them " acceptors of persons" 
in their judicial administrations ; but that the allwise 
and omniscient God must be inaccessible to such 
sinister and grovelling influences ; that being per- 
fectly acquainted with the rules of equity, and neces- 
sarily judging of things as they really exist ; and being 
able to execute what is right and fit according to 
that knowledge, without any possible temptation to 
deviate from it, he is incapable of being moved or 
misled by any bias, or awed by any power : that 
such a Being must evidently always act without par- 
tiality, prejudice, or respect of persons, and therefore 
must be "righteous in all his ways." 

In order to prove that the Lord is holy in all his 

works, Mr. remarked that he who has will 

united to reason must be a moral agent : that he 
who has reason in the highest and most perfect degree, 
must be in the highest and most perfect degree a 
moral agent : that he who is above every temptation 
to be bad, must be uniformly good : or, in other 
words, that he who has an infinite understanding, as 
well as an unbiassed will, must always perceive the 
best motives, and act in conformity with them, con- 
sequently must be " holy in all his works." The 
arguments were clearly laid down, and the discourse 
generally written in a nervous and forcible style ; 
but on the whole it tended more, I thought, to display 
the oratorical powers of the preacher, than to edify 
or improve the hearer. 

Monday, 22nd. — Visited the fustian and cotton 
manufactory, and other public buildings in the town ; 



312 VJSIT TO I ICELAND. 

also a roomy old house called the bishop's palace. 
It contained a tolerable good collection of paintings, 
&c; a delicious picture by West — subject, the death 
of General Wolfe. Another, by the same, the re- 
surrection of our Saviour : Moses sweetening the 
waters of Meribah, by Nicolo Poussin, &c. ; mo- 
dels of the Pantheon and the triumphal arches at 
Rome ; antique statues, vases, and bas-reliefs, by 
Paoli, Panini, &c. In the garden are a spacious 
hothouse and green house, containing a good collec- 
tion of rare and foreign plants ; the grounds mostly in 
great disorder and much neglected. The pleasure- 
house is painted in a very tasteful manner, being an 
imitation of basaltic pillars, and an excellent represen- 
tation of the Giant's Causeway. One of the party 
thought the basaltic columns were real ; much 
amused at the deception. Crossed the ferry, and 
took a post-chaise at the waterside for Coleraine. 
Had an unfavourable afternoon, much rain, attended 
with thunder and lightning. Passed Daisy Hill, a 
remarkably pretty seat belonging to Mr. M'Caus- 
tand. Reached Newton Limevaddy by 4 o'clock ; 
a neat little town, pleasantly situated on the river 
Roe ; here are a church and a market-house, nothing 
else very remarkable. It being a market day, had a 
good opportunity of observing the manners and 
dresses of the natives, and the produce of the neigh- 
bourhood. Arrived at Coleraine,* a very consi- 



* The city of Coleraine, or Bannina, as it was anciently styled, 
lies about two miles and a half from that curious basaltic struc- 
ture, Craig-a-huller; the road, passing the seat of M'Naghten, 
Esq. is rather an agreeable ride. The county of the city of Cole- 



VISIT TO IRELAND. 313 

derable town four miles from the sea. The river 
Barm runs through it. It was a place of some con- 
sequence in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, during 
the adminstration of the lord deputy, Sir John Perrot, 
and was a see, St. Carbreus, who flourished about 
the year 540, being the first bishop. The church is 
a handsome building, and very old, the date of it not 

raine, otherwise called O'Cahan's country, is of ancient appoint- 
ment; it was divided, as we learn from the Hibernica of Harris, 
into ballyboes, as Tyrone, and contained 547 of these measures, 
or 34,187 acres. The town appears to have been originally laid 
out by Sir John Perrot. It was planted with English colonists, 
and the very houses are said to have been framed in London, and 
sent over here to be erected. Until very lately some of the black 
oak frames, filled with plastered wicker, were to be seen on one 
side of the Diamond. After the retirement of Sir John, Cole- 
raine fell greatly to decay ; in 1618, the walls and ramparts were 
built of sods ; there was no provision for the mounting of a 
single piece of artillery, and the number of inhabitants scarcely 
sufficient to man one-sixth part of the walls ; but the introduction 
of a manufacture, and enjoyment of a free trade, united with the 
industry and good conduct of its inhabitants, have rendered Cole- 
raine not only the second town in the county, but a nourishing, 
beautiful, and happy settlement. Coleraine is, at present, about 
three quarters of a mile in length, and is intersected by several 
cross streets. The old town stood on the east side of the Bann ; 
but Captain-street, and the suburb of Killowen, are now included 
in the precincts of the city. There is an excellent linen trade 
carried on here ; and it is a market, post, and fair town. The 
family of Harger derive the title of Barons from this place. 
About the year 540, St. Carbreus, a disciple of St. Finian of 
Clonard, was made first bishop of Coleraine. To him succeeded 
St. Eonall, who was bishop in the time of St. Columb, the founder 
of the abbey of Derry. In 930, Ardmedius, abbot of Cole- 
raine, was cruelly murdered by the Danes ; and in 1171, Manus 
M'Dunlave plundered this church and several others. In 1213, 
Thomas M'Ucchtry and the Gauls of Ulster, erected a castle 



314 VISIT TO IRELAND. 

precisely known; it is kept in good order. Much 
delighted with the beautiful seat of Mr. Jackson ; the 
summer-house ingeniously and elegantly thatched, 
the fences and gates of wickerwork, wattled in the 
neatest manner imaginable. 

Tuesday, 26th. — Left Coleraine this morning, and 
travelled leisurely towards the Causeway : within 

here, for which purpose they raised all the pavement, and de- 
stroyed every part of the abbey, the church only excepted. To 
the west of the town stood a monastery, called the Monastery of 
the Bann, founded in the fifth century, by the noble family of 
the O'Cahans, or by the M'Evelins. In 1244, it was dedicated to 
the Virgin Mary; and, in 1484, was reformed by the Dominican 
order. In 1560, Sir Robert Savage, Knt. of Ulster, an excel- 
lent soldier, was buried here. And in 1644, this monastery was 
erected into a university, by the general council of Rome. In the 
Hibernia Dominica many interesting particulars are recorded of 
this ancient establishment; amongst others, a remarkable triumph 
of the Virgin's image over the Scotch bishop, Brutus Babington, 
and his attendants, is detailed at full length. The landed pro- 
perty of the monastery of the Bann was resigned into the hands of 
commissioners employed by James the First, and by him granted 
to the London Society. The last prior was Shane O'Neill. The 
present church is parochial, and is a rectory in the diocese of 
Connor. The bridge over the river Bann is built of stone and 
wood ; the piers are stone, the flooring, span pieces, and ceiling 
of wood. Such bridges are very proper where there are both a 
rapid current and a great body of water. From the bridge, on 
the north side, is seen the pretty seat of — Jackson, Esq. ; and to 
the south, the river view is extremely rich and beautiful. The 
fishery of the Bann has long been celebrated for its productive- 
ness ; it was, at different periods, the property of different per- 
sons and bodies ; namely, the Protector Cromwell, the earls of 
Donegall, the London Society, &c. At present, one fishery 
belongs to the Society, the other to the Donegall family. The value 
of course varies with the prices of provisions ; the average rent 
of each is probably about one thousand pounds per annum, &c. 
— Guide to the Giant's Causevjay, 1834. [Ed.] 



VISIT TO IRELAND. 315 

about four miles of this lies Dunluce Castle,* a very 
extensive but dilapidated edifice, situated on the 
margin of the sea, so that the walls and towers seem 
only a continuation of a perpendicular rock, which 
is several feet high, and is washed by the waves. 
The entire area of rock, which is detached from the 
land by a wide and deep chasm, is completely occu- 

* The walls of the building were never very lofty, but, from the 
great area which they inclose, contained a considerable number 
of apartments. One small vaulted room is said to be inhabited 
by a Banshee, whose chief occupation is sweeping the floor : this 
story originates in the positive fact that the floor is at all times as 
clean as if it had been just then swept ; but this difficulty can be 
explained, without the introduction of Maw Roi, the fairy, by the 
fact that the wind gains admittance through an aperture on a level 
with the floor, and thus preserves the appearance of cleanliness 
and freedom from dust just now described. In the north-eastern 
end is a small room actually projecting over the sea, the rocky 
base having fallen away ; and from the door of this apartment 
there is a very awful view of the green sea beneath. The rock on 
which the castle stands is not surrounded by water, but is united, 
at the bottom of the chasm, to the main land, by a ledge of rock, 
a little higher than the surface of the ocean. The castle was en- 
tered by a bridge, formed in the following manner : — two parallel 
walls, about eight feet asunder, thrown across the chasm, con- 
nected the rock with the main land : upon these, planks were laid 
cross-wise for the admission of visitors, and removed immediately 
after the passage was effected. At present, but one of the walls 
remains, about thirteen inches in thickness ; and the only path- 
way to the castle is along its summit, over the awful rocky chasm. 
On the main land, close to the castle, a second collection of simi- 
lar buildings are seen, erected at a later period, by one of the 
Antrim family, in consequence of a melancholy occurrence 
amongst the domestics in the castle. A small apartment on the 
verge of the rock gave way, and fell into the ocean, which so 
alarmed the female part of the family, that additional apartments 
were erected for their accomodation upon the main land. This is 
said to have happened during the occupancy of Catherine Man- 



316 VISIT TO IRELAND. 

pied by the building. It was the ancient residence 
of the lords of Antrim, was entered by a drawbridge 
placed over the frightful chasm, and, before the in- 
vention of gunpowder, it must have been impreg- 
nable. Such fortifications as these are the produc- 
tions of mere necessity, as they are constructed only 
for security from rival chieftains or roving pirates, 
with little regard to convenience, and with consider- 
ably less to pleasure and elegance. Its exact date is 
not known. 

Arrived at Bushmills, a neat little village on the 
river Bush, at the mouth of Ballintra Bay. Two 
miles further, along a good road, for which the 

ners, widow of George Villiers, the great Duke of Buckingham, 
who married Randall, the first Marquis of Antrim. Though all 
accurate knowledge of the date of erection, and name of the 
founder of Dunluce Castle are completely lost, yet the history of 
its proprietors for the few last centuries is extremely interesting, 
and affords a very characteristic account of the state of society in 
the feudal periods of the 15th and 16th centuries. It has been 
conjectured that De Courcy, Earl of Ulster, originally founded 
this castle : but the architecture is not of so very ancient a date. 
In the 15th century it was held by the English ; at which period 
it appears to have fallen into the hands of a noble English family, 
called by Camden, M' Willies, from whose hands it passed into 
the possession of M'Donalds of the Isles ; and to their descen- 
dants it belongs at this day. The M'Willies, now generally 
called M'Quillans, were the descendants of the De Burgos, a 
noble English family, who were once lords of that part of the 
county of Antrim usually denominated the Rout. In Hamilton's 
Letters is a tolerably perfect account of the unfortunate family of 
the M'Quillans, from the first moment of their intercourse with 
the M'Donalds, in 1580, when Colonel M'Donald, brother to 
James, Lord of Cantyre, came into Ireland, with a band of men, 
to assist Tyrconnell against the great O'Neill, with whom he was 
then at war, or, according to the Antrim MS. to settle the dispute 



VISIT TO IRELAND. 317 

public are indebted to the bishop of Derry, is, I sup- 
pose, the greatest phenomenon in the world, the 
1 Giant's Causeway,' a range of basaltic cliffs, con- 
sisting of many thousand vertical rectangular pillars. 
They are of the colour and hardness of iron, and 
even resist the file; are composed of a number of 
joints nicely fitted, and so close to one another that 
a knife-blade can with difficulty be inserted through 
them. As to shape they are generally pentagonal, 
hexagonal, and septagonal : yet almost all are irre- 
gular, none of their sides being of equal breadth. 
Great have been the labours of learned and scientific 
men to ascertain the composition of this fossil, and 

between Irish Coll and M'Quillan. The history of Dunluce 
Castle, from the marriage of Col. M< Donald, is inseparable from 
that of the Antrim family, into whose possession it fell upon the 
death of the father in law of Coll. In 1585, Sorley Boy, i. e. 
Yellow Charles, lord of Dunluce Castle, still preserving a rebel- 
lious disposition, was besieged in his castle by Sir John Perrot, lord 
deputy of Ireland. The account of the siege is to be met with in Sir 
John's Life. In 1642 Dunluce Castle was the scene of another act 
of treachery of as black a character. In the month of April in 
that year, General Munroe made a visit to the Earl of Antrim, at 
this castle, and was received with many expressions of joy, and 
honoured with splendid entertainments ; and further, the earl 
offered him assistance of men and money, to reduce the country 
to tranquillity. But this Munroe, when these feats were over, 
seized on the earl's person, took possession of his castle, and put 
the other castles of his lordship into the hands of the Marquis of 
Argyle's men. He conveyed the earl to Carrickfergus, and im- 
prisoned him in the castle ; but from this he very soon effected 
his escape, and withdrew to England. Shortly after this period, 
Bally magarry became the favourite residence of the M' Donalds ; 
but this noble mansion was accidentally burned in 1750; from 
which time, to the present day, Glenarm Castle has been the family 
seat. — Guide to the Giant's Causeway, 1834. [Ed.] 



318 VISIT TO IRELAND. 

their theories have been nearly as numerous as they 
have been diversified ; some considering it to be the 
entrochos lapis, the astroites or lapis stellosis, 
and to be of the same species as the lapis misneus 
of Stolpen in Saxony, of which a description is 
given by Agricola in his " History of Fossils." 
Others are of opinion that its chemical properties 
are different, and they trace its formation to the 
action of volcanic fire ; while a third maintain it to 
be a crystallization from water. The Causeway is 
plainly the work of nature, and runs through the 
whole of the northern coast, under the sea to Rath- 
lin Island, and even to Scotland.* Its length, at 
low water, is about 600 feet, if not more ; its breadth 
in the widest part 250 feet, and in the narrowest 
about 120 feet ; and its height about 36 feet or up- 
wards.f Pliny says, the largest block of basalt 
ever seen was placed by Vespasian in the temple of 
Peace ; and that the statue of Memnon, in the temple 
of Serapis, at Thebes, was constructed of this stone- 
We went to see a cave hard by, which, according to 
the simple natives, " the mighty big giant made for* 
his ow7i convanience" and in which this renowned 
hero of the place cooled his wine no doubt ! This 
cavern is of very considerable dimensions, in the 
bosom of the solid rock, and at a distance it bears 
the appearance of a Gothic archway. The roof is 

* Staffa, one of the Western Isles, is composed of this stone. 
-[Ed.] 

f The promontory of Benmore, or Fairhead, is 500 feet above 
the level of the sea, and some of the blocks exceed 200 feet in 
height. — Dublin Penny Journal. [Ed.] 



VISIT TO IRELAND. 319 

beautifully formed of the same species of stone as 
the mole, of various shapes and sizes, as if executed 
with the utmost elegance of art, in some measure re- 
sembling an exquisitely worked cornice of a cathe- 
dral ceiling. This excavation is also remarkable for 
a very powerful reverberation of sounds ; though not 
quite so musical perhaps as that basaltic piece of 
workmanship which resounded at the rising of the 
sun, and to which Juvenal refers when he says, 

" Dimidio magicse resonant ubi Memnone chordse." 

We dined amidst this wild magnificence of nature, 
having very substantial materials for our table, chairs, 
and carpet, and a serene sky for our canopy ; thus 
we enjoyed a repast of rational luxury, and a flow of 
intellectual delight. We left this romantic scenery 
with regret, and encamped at Ballimony, a large but 
scattered village, near which is the elegant mansion 
of Mr. Leslie, called "Leslie Hill." 

Friday, 29th. — We came this morning to Ahoghill, 
a small village within eleven miles of Antrim. This 
we intended making our resting place ; but, owing to 
the vile humour of our landlady, we found it imprac- 
ticable, so we precipitated our departure, and, feeling 
happy at our escape, left the lioness to herself, 
concurring with the immortal bard, that 

" Anger is like 
A full hot horse, who being allowed his way 
Self-mettle tires him." 

Visited the Moravian settlement at Grace Hill, 
which is situated on a rising ground opposite Gilgorn 
Castle. The settlement was founded in 1746, and 



320 VISIT TO IRELAND. 

contains about 300 inhabitants. Differing, as these 
people do, from us in the form only of ecclesiastical 
government, we cannot but regret their exclusion 
from the pale of our church, as there is no body of 
Christians who more closely resemble the primitive 
disciples either in the peaceableness of their dispo- 
sitions, or in the purity and usefulness of their lives. 
After a very uninteresting drive of seven miles, we 
reached Randalstown, a village agreeably situated 
on the river Main, and rendered picturesque by the 
neighbouring plantations and the richness of the 
grounds. There being nothing worthy of much 
notice here, we passed on and drove through the rich 
and beautifully wooded demesne of the Right Hon. 
Sir John O'Neil,* and stopped at Shane's Castle, t 
a splendid mansion belonging to that gentleman, and 
enchantingly situated on the banks of Lough Naigh.J 



* Afterwards Lord O' Neil. In the rebellion of 1798, afurious 
battle was fought at Antrim, in which the rebels were routed with 
prodigious slaughter ; but, sad to say, this amiable nobleman lost 
his life, when valiantly combating in the defence of his sovereign 
and our glorious constitution. — Traveller s Guide, 1815. [Ed.] 

f The magnificent mansion of Shane's Castle, anciently Eden- 
duff Carrick, was unhappily destroyed by fire in 1816; and we 
understand there is no immediate intention of restoring it. — Guide 
to the Causeway, 1834. [Ed.] 

% The healing property of this lake I conceive to be fabulous ; 
but as very grave and learned naturalists have not hesitated to 
mention it, I shall quote their words. " The healing property of 
Lough Neagh is supposed to be confined to that part of the lake 
called the Fishing Bay, which is bounded by the school lands of 
Dungarvon. The occasion of first taking notice of this bay for 
cure, is said to have been in the reign of Charles II. in the in- 
stance of the son of Mr. Cunningham, who had an evil to that de- 



VISIT TO IRELAND. 321 

That noble expanse of water is twenty miles long", 
and fifteen broad, and about eighty miles in circum- 
ference : with the exception of lakes Ladoga and 
Geneva, it is the largest in Europe. It is said to pos- 
sess both healing and petrifying qualities ; but as we 
required not the one, and had no time for an experi- 

gree, that it run on him in eight or ten places. He was touched by 
the king (to whose royal touch a virtue was at that time ascribed 
of healing this distemper), and all imaginable means were unsuc- 
cessfully used for his recovery : his body was so wasted that he 
could not walk. At length he was bathed in this lake for eight 
days, when his sores were dried up, and he grew healthy, and 
married, had children, and lived many years." — Down Survey. 

The very name of Neagh, which is probably a corruption of 
Neasganulcer, seems to allude to an ancient belief in this healing 
property of the waters ; and also the more ancient name of Lion- 
nmhuine, that is, the Lake of the Sore, bears a similar reference. 
The fabulous writers of the early ages assert, that Lough Neagh 
first burst forth in the year 65 of the Christian era, when Lugaid 
Rhaibderg ascended the throne of Ireland, at which time there 
were but three lakes and ten rivers in the whole kingdom. The 
petrifying quality of the lake is attended with circumstances of a 
more interesting nature to the philosopher, and has continued to 
puzzle our most sagacious naturalists from the time of Nennius, 
who wrote of this fact in the ninth century, to the present day. 
Tradition states, that pieces of holly have been completely trans- 
muted into stone in the space of seven years, by the waters of the 
lake, while the experiments of the philosopher prove that a lapse 
of twenty years was insufficient to cause the slightest apparent 
tendency to petrifaction in pieces of the same timber, similarly 
disposed. One account asserts, that a holly stake has been 
driven into the sandy bottom of the lake, so that one portion was 
buried in the sand, another under water, and the remainder ex- 
posed to the atmosphere ; and the result was, that the lower part 
was converted into iron, the middle into stone, and the upper re- 
tained its ligneous nature ; but this harmless chimera is unworthy 
of belief. Such an experiment was tried for the purpose of ascer* 

Y 



322 VISIT TO IRELAND. 

ment on the other, we felt perfectly satisfied with 
the report of its celebrity. We passed a ruinous 
seat of Earl Massareen, adjoining the grounds of Sir 
John O'Neil, and soon afterwards, a handsome but 
dilapidated bridge over the " Six-mile-water." An- 
trim is an extensive but ruinous town on the Six-mile 
river. It was at one period a place of some note ; 

taining to which of the three elements in question the petrifying 
quality was attributable, but probably neither the duration of the 
experimentalist's life, nor the impatience of discovery, permitted 
the result of a sufficient experiment to be fairly established ; and 
the state of the argument at this day is, that such a property or 
petrifying quality actually exists in the vicinity of Lough Neagh ; 
but where this virtue resides, whether in the soil, the water, or the 
exhalations which arise from the lake, is still a matter of contro- 
versy amongst the learned. The strand of the Lough abounds in 
very beautiful pebbles, much resembling the Scotch, and suscep- 
tible of a very high polish. Several beautiful specimens may be 
seen in the excellent mineralogical collection of the Royal Dublin 
Society. There are but two small islands in the Lough, Black- 
water Island, at the mouth of the river, from which it derives its 
appellation, and Ram Island, which is rendered remarkable by its 
lofty ancient round tower : this latter is about one mile and a half 
from the shore; and from the shallowness of the intervening 
channel, is supposed to have been a peninsula, when the tower 
was built. The height of the remaining part of the tower is about 
40 feet, and is in good preservation. — Guide to the Giants' 
Causeway, 1834. 

A cottage which is extremely pretty, and furnished in the most 
tasteful manner, was some time since erected (on Ram's Island) 
by Earl O'Neil, to whom it belongs. The entire ground is laid 
out into walks, and covered with verdure. Several hundred rose 
trees, and those plants and flowers which constitute the pride of 
our gardens, all flourish luxuriantly. Even those sides of the 
island which are almost perpendicular, are adorned with all those 
creeping plants and hardy shrubs which are adapted to the situa- 
tion. — Dublin Penny Journal, 1833-4. Ed. 



VISIT TO IRELAND. 323 

but during the rebellion, in the reign of Charles II., 
it was burnt down by that bigoted puritan, Robert 
Monro and his blinded followers, and it has not since 
been entirely restored. It was anciently a bishop- 
rick ; and, according to Camden, an abbey was 
founded here by Durtracta, a disciple of St. Patrick's. 
None of us, I believe, possessed such frigid philoso- 
phy as to traverse this and other spots in the land of 
Erin, without some strong emotions. On the north 
side of the town of Antrim is a very remarkable 
structure, called a " Round Tower," of which there 
are many in this country. It is about ninety feet 
high ; it consists of three stories with loop-holes in 
each, for the admission of light or air, and it tapers 
at the top in the form of a cone. We were not able 
to ascertain correctly either the date or the purpose 
of its erection, so unconnected is it with any other 
building. But from the appearance of a cross, rudely 
cut over the door, together with other indications, I 
should conceive it was appropriated to ecclesiastical 
purposes, and possibly might have been a part of St. 
Durtract's Abbey. ****** 
Cetera desunt. 

" MY DEAR PETER, Galloway House, Oct. 20, 1787. 

" You may possibly be a little entertained with a 
short narrative of our travels in Ireland ; at least 
as the account comes from me, you will perhaps 
have patience enough to read it, and goodness enough 
to overlook its imperfections. That it may not tire 
you, I will take care that it shall be of no immode- 
rate length. 



324 VISIT TO IRELAND. 

" The two youngsters under my care, and a phy- 
sician of the name of Brown, formed the whole of 
our party. We embarked on a fine day in July last, 
and hovered off the coast of Scotland the whole 
night. There is nothing so beautiful in a Scotch 
shore but you can quit it without regret ; indeed 
we could not help wishing we could have parted 
with it sooner than we did, but the wind would not 
permit us. The next morning when we awoke we 
were surprised to find we were not near the Hiber- 
nian shore, but near Stranraer, a little town in Gal- 
loway ; the wind, which continued high and adverse 
during the greatest part of the morning, seemed de- 
termined to expose to our view a little more of the 
nudities of Scotland before we left it. About mid- 
day the wind became more favourable ; we cleared 
Loch Ryan, and sailed within view of the Isle of 
Aisle : standing for Londonderry. Aisle is a conical 
rock, about half channel over, and forms no bad 
object at sea, where so few interesting objects are 
to be discovered. The wind through the greatest 
part of the day blew fresh, and the sea was rather 
rough, especially to our young sailors. Our medical 
companion lectured very scientifically on the various 
methods of preventing and assuaging sea sickness ; 
but, lo ! in the midst of his learned disquisitions, he 
began to be most violently affected himself, to our 
no small amusement, and he stood in greater need 
of his theories than any of the party. In the after- 
noon we came to anchor in Church Bay, in Rachlin, 
a little island about a league and a half from the 
northern extremity of Ireland. We had no sooner 



VISIT TO IRELAND. 325 

dropped our anchor, than several boats came off, 
with dried fish and poultry to barter. I thought we 
had struck upon some savage coast. No cannibals 
could have looked wilder, or have shewn less marks 
of civilization. They bargained with the crew for 
old jackets, waistcoats, and other articles of clothing, 
and paid with pieces of dried cod, which appeared to 
be their current coin; and, as they counted in pure 
Irish, it gave the scene the greater appearance of 
our being among uncultivated savages. One of 
these strange looking people had a hen on which he 
seemed to place no small value. He would exchange 
it for nothing but bread, and that of the best sort. 
On the captain's boy expostulating with him on the 
unreasonableness of his demand, he answered in broken 
English, and in the brogue of the country, " Mate 
for mate, man, God preserve us, Ho!" Struck with 
the oddity of the whole scene, I got into the small 
boat and landed on the island, and found it a most 
miserable spot, but well worth exploring. It con- 
tains about twelve hundred inhabitants, such as they 
are, — is about five miles long, and one mile broad. 

" The next day we committed ourselves again to 
the winds and waves, and, after sailing for a day or 
two along the coast as far as Glenarm, we entered 
Loch Foyle, a lake about eighteen miles long, where 
we came to anchor. We rowed to Londonderry, and 
saw the place where the boom was thrown across in 
the memorable siege of 1688, when Walker the pro- 
testant clergyman commanded, and bid defiance to 
the united power of the papists, and that of their 
cowardly king. We examined the city very parti- 



326 



VISIT TO IRELAND. 



cularly; and, be assured, not without some powerful 
emotions. We read on the spot the account of the 
rebellion, and the noble stand made by the brave 
garrison. My young friends were much entertained 
with an anecdote told us of a fat man, who, in the 
distress during their scarcity of provisions, concealed 
himself for three days, imagining they would cer- 
tainly select him, should they be reduced to the 
necessity of feeding on one another. 

" We went by land through Colerainc, to see the 
celebrated Giants' Causeway, a quarry of basalt. 
The appearance is a mass or masses of perpendicular 
pillars resembling a solid honeycomb, and is one of 
the greatest natural curiosities in the world. One of 
my young companions was highly diverted with the 
account our guides gave of it, and listened with 
much pretended conviction to his tale. My young 
friend seemed inclined, however, to impugn the 
veracity of the narrator, and confessed he could not 
well comprehend how pillars of from thirty to forty 
feet high, as some of them are, could be placed there 
by human hand, or even by that of a giant. The 
countryman assured him that the artificer was several 
miles tall. ' He wash a hundred years ould when he 
wash born,'' said he, ' and share ner a word of lie 
Tm telling ye, yer honor.' This threw the youngsters 
into roars of laughter, and seemed to afford them 
greater amusement than anything they had heard 
the whole journey. 

" We took a postchaise from this very interesting 
place, and directed our course to Belfast. At An- 
trim we had one of the most delightful evening walks 



VISIT TO IRELAND. 327 

I ever remember. It would have had charms for a 
Thomson. The evening" was still, the moon was 
bright, and the path lay through old gardens and a 
grove of the finest and most aristocratic trees in the 
country. We were so pleased with our stroll, that 
it was late at night before we returned to our quar- 
ters : a few trout caught in Loch Neagh, and re- 
markable for their size, afforded us an excellent 
supper ; and we had an amusing conversation on the 
adventures of the day : while the philosophical 
ramble of the evening heightened the relish of the 
repast. Loch Neagh is well worth seeing of itself; 
it is eighty miles in circumference. Shane's Castle 
and the wood around form an elegant ornament to its 
bank, and add much to the richness of the scenery. 
Our little cutter met us at Belfast Harbour, where 
we embarked, after viewing the various objects of 
curiosity, and set sail for Scotland. Here I am now 
and here I write myself, my dear brother, yours 
affectionately, 

" Eliezer Williams. 

" To Mr. P. Williams, 
Jesus College, Oxford." 



PROLOGUES AND EPILOGUES. 



PROLOGUE, 

Spoken by Mr. Wat kin William Thomas, on the acting of 
Terence's Andria by the Boys of Lampeter School, at the 
Town Hall, Lampeter, 22nd Dec. 1814. 

There are who deem us evidently wrong 

T" attempt a drama in an unknown tongue ; 

But that sole circumstance may prove the cause 

Of sure success, and gain us your applause ; 

For things by language, or by dress, conceaFd, 

Are thought more beautiful than things reveal'd. 

In lovely billet-doux, how soft the line ! 

French words adorn — how charming, how divine ! 

And Latin has its charms — what nymph denied 

Her lover pardon, who peccavi cried ? 

In each profession, Latin is the spell, 

Latin's the charm to make a man excel ! 

How could grave justices enforce the law, 

How, without Latin, keep poor rogues in awe ? 

For thus they frighten the poor wretch before 'em ; 

Must this be sufFer'd ? we are of the quorum ! 

Make out his mittimus, for that his fate is ; 

We ne'er forgive the crime of " ccesce majestatis." 

From the low conjurors of cups and balls 

To the learn'd advocate in county halls, 

Whoever miss'd a trick, or lost a cause, 

Who knew by Latin phrase to win applause ? 

By hocus pocus, or by fieri facias 

The man of learning constantly the case has. 

What makes their bills and periwigs so large? 

What swells the lawyer's brief — the judge's charge — 



330 PROLOGUE. 

What but their Latin and their learned cant O, 

Their Habeas Corpus, and their " quo warranto V 

This is the talisman, the charm, depend on't, 

To conjure cash from plaintiff and defendant. 

This! in this place* ! I own I feel an awe, 

Lest I should raise the spirit of the law ; 

I doubt I've gone too far ! I'm sadly frighted, 

Lest, the next sessions, I should be indicted. 

But to the doctors I'll direct my sight, 

Who knows but they may cure me of my fright? 

What can renown'd apothecaries, pray, 

Or skilful surgeons, without Latin, say ? 

But oft their learning and their labour's lost; 

They cannot half enough of Latin boast : 

Vain are their arts, pingandi and secandi ; 

What must be done, good christians ! must the man die ? 

No, call in one of a superior tribe, 

One by diploma boasting to prescribe ; 

He comes in Latin wonderfully skill'd, 

And the poor patient's cured at once — or kill'd ; 

For many a man, ere now, has found his fate in 

A learn'd prescription, neatly veiPd in Latin. 

There are who think their prayers won't be heard, 

Unless in Latin they should be preferr'd ; 

For what in this world is not understood, 

Is fit for heaven, they think, and must be good. 

The chosen pastor makes his pulpit shake, 

And tries all arts to keep his flock awake ; 

But spite of all his arts, and all decorum, 

They nod, they doze, they sleep, they snore before 'm : 

"What, sleep ! the drowsy rogues," he roars, " I'll rant 'em, 

He fell who slighted Paulum predicant em." 

The charm prevails at once, see how they strain 

To shake off Morpheus' captivating chain ; 



The Town Hall, Lampeter. 



PROLOGUE. 331 

Turn up their sleepy eyes with vast discerning, 

And wonder at his piety and learning. 

Finding that Latin is so much in fashion, 

We thought the way to win your approbation 

Was to select a play (for boys love play), 

Where we spout Latin every word we say, 

And what by some is thought excessive good, 

Where we can talk, and not be understood ; 

Where we quote jests that will no blushes raise, 

And laugh at wit, laugh'd at in ancient days. 

Methinks I hear a female critic cry, 

"This Andria's character, dear ma'am, stands high, 

One nam'd Tear-haunches # first contrived the play, 

A Roman youth, a lad of parts they say ; 

The plot is excellent, the style divine ! 

Why, there is Latin, ma'am, 1 in every line; 

'Tis of Athenian origin, and further, 

Tis a love story — not at all 'bout murther." 

So the fair dame — But 'twas a source of strife, 

To find a father choose his son a wife ; 

But the sly youth, subdued by matchless charms, 

Clasp'd a defenceless stranger in his arms : 

The father frown'd ; the lady chanced to find 

Her friends and fortune — and he changed his mind. 

" Why, as the lady has so full a purse," 

He cries, " the youngster might, perhaps, do worse." 

The young folk married — on my word, 'tis true, 

And all were pleased — and so, I hope, will you. 

I fear I've spoil'd the tale — but don't discard it, 

'Twas a good story reckon'd, when I heard it; 

To mar a story thus is wrong, no doubt, 

I'll call my school-fellows to help me out; 

And though we cannot tell a story well, 

Your smiles, I'm confident, will make it tell. 



* Terentius. 



332 



PROLOGUE, 

Delivered by Mr. W. W. Thomas, on acting Terence's Comedy 
of Phormio, by the Boys of Lampeter, Cardiganshire, at the 
Town Hall, Lampeter, Dec. 20, 1815. 

Oft have I heard old orators declaim 

Of Grecian genius and of Roman fame. 

The moderns censure, and the ancients praise, 

And shake their heads at our degen'rate days ; 

But I, an orator of recent birth, 

Stand here, the advocate of modern worth, 

Resolved to vindicate the fire and spirit 

Of modern genius and of modern merit. 

The Gauls of old kept Caesar years at bay, 

The moderns closed their business in a day. 

Had old Rome triumph'd on the Belgic plains, 

She would have seized a province for her pains. 

But profiting by war we are above — 

To show the world we only fight for love. 

Your ancient hero, when not worth a groat, 

Would fret, grow sullen, mope — -and cut his throat ; 

But modern heroes bravely dare to spare it, 

And glut and feast it with beef-steaks and claret. 

What mortals e'er in classic authors read 

Of Roman bakers walking for their bread ? 

While crowds astonish'd throng to see the wonder, 

A peasant walking or a justice blunder ? 

Satiric Juvenal a tale would broach 

Of Roman statesmen, who could drive a coach ; 

But what is that to nobles in our land, 

Who, Jehu-like, can manage four in hand ? 

What were the lawyers, famed in ancient ages, 

To our learned justice-loving sages ? 



PROLOGUE. 333 

Could they make laws, to save a sinking land, 

Which none, without their aid, could understand ? 

Could they spin out a suit — or make an end on't, 

Till time should make an end of plaintiff and defendant ? 

Could Roman doctors read a sick man's brains, 

And by its dictates cure the patient's pains ? 

Or with metallic tractors heal old sprains ? 

Could they with animal magnetism mad 

Cure monied dupes of ills they never had? 

Or from an aged prophetess — to please her — 

Cut out a fancied hip-begotten Caesar? 

No — these were feats unknown in ancient story, 

By fate reserved to heighten Britain's glory. 

What were the Salii or the priests of Rome 

To our own motley ministers at home ? 

Where each mechanic's learned in the art, 

To act the minister's or tradesman's part? 

Where the same hand is raised — divine, no doubt — 

Now with a hammer in't, and now without ? 

Or at his customer's, or heaven's control, 

To mend a slipper now — and now a soul ? 

Where rustic swains for teachers quit their trade, 

Resign the plough, and spurn the useless spade ! 

Homer and Maro, we are gravely told, 

Were look'd upon as prodigies of old ; 

But bards, like flowers, in modern days appear, 

And bud, and bloom, and wither in a year. 

To ancient actors 'twas a dreadful task, 

To seek the theatre without a mask ; 

But modern actors on the stage will rush, 

Without the slightest hazard of a blush. 

Your Roman wits conceived of old, 'tis true, 

And once an age brought forth a piece or two ; 

But the prolific writings of our age, 

Crowd, with their num'rous progeny, the stage; 

While sympathising critics, at the birth, 

Feel all the pangs of pity or of mirth. 



334 PROLOGUE. 

Some roar the " Stagyrite" theatric laws, 

Some groan, some hiss, some thunder out applause. 

Amidst such tumults usher'd into light, 

The poor dear bantlings die — perhaps of fright. 

Judge from the specimen we give to-night, 

Whether these Romans knew the art to write. 

How singular the characters they drew, 

How little of the fashionable world they knew. 

An angry lady's pictured in our play, 

Storming to find her husband go astray ; 

But modern dames whene'er their husbands roam, 

Are kindly comforted by friends at home. 

Abound in love you've found our play, I'm certain, 

Although conceal'd, in part, behind the curtain. 

But if you ladies can't the whole discern, 

Why then, I think, our language you must learn ; 

You'll soon, I have no doubt, apt scholars prove 

How easy 'tis to say, A mo, I love. 

Will you apply ? — 'twill very much amuse you — 

Nay, do it now — the men will not excuse you. 

Did you but comprehend our lingo well, 

You'd see in what our Latin plays excel ; 

How they abound in lovers, and in wits, 

In lawyers also, processes and writs, 

Solicitors, who drive in gigs about, 

And build their splendid palaces, no doubt ; 

While every town presents a noble group, 

I see no reason why th' oppress'd should droop : 

You know the lawyers ne'er their clients dupe. 

Phormio you'd find the engine of our plot, 

Bold in intrigue, he never miss'd a shot : 

One, who alike to prove, has learnt the nack 

That black is white, or else that white is black. 



335 



PROLOGUE 

To Terence s Comedy of Adelphi, acted by the Boys of Lam- 
peter School, Dec. 19, 1816, and spoken by the head boy, 
Mr. John Jenkins, sen. The two Latin Prologues, by 
Messrs D. Griffith and Watkin Herbert. 

Since acting is the fashion of the day, 

Faith, I'll e'en try what I can do that way, 

Put on a mimic face, and tread the stage, 

Like other actors of this acting age. 

For rich and poor, I find, and high and low, 

And young and old — all, all are actors now. 

An able statesman, of majestic mien, 

Boldly stands forward on the public scene ; 

" To save his country in distress he'll try, 

Though in the glorious enterprise to die" — 

His country's interest he feels at heart, 

He's thought sincere, so well he plays his part; 

But get behind the scenes — you'll find it true — 

'Tis his own interest he has most in view. 

A patriot next appears upon the stage, 

Who feels at court ungovernable rage, 

Rails at the minister, condemns the laws, 

Cajoles the populace, and gains applause ; 

But look beneath the mask, 'tis all grimace, 

The mimic patriot only wants a place — 

He toils to talk the premier's party down, 

Not for his country's, but his own renown. 

A rich contractor next, at placemen rails : 

" This peace has ruin'd us, our commerce fails, 

Trade is no more, and agriculture's gone, 

Our manufacturers are all undone, 

The country's lost, unless — we have a war ;" 

How well he acts — his parts are famed afar, 



336 PROLOGUE. 

Till some suspect, resistless as he rants, 

That a good contract is the thing he wants. 

O'er the rich feast the citizen complains, 

" Our lab'ring poor are starving on our plains" — 

" Then eat less ven'son, let the poor have some ;" — 

— " My good friend, charity begins at home ;" 

<l I wish to act a charitable part, 

But want the means" — " You want a bounteous heart." 

How well that brewer mashes all the great, 

And shews what drugs adulterate the state 

Trust him b.ut with the constitution's chive, 

He'll brew ! he'll keep his customers alive ! 

His acting shows he'd profit more, I fear, 

By brewing mischief, than by brewing beer. 

'Tis a bad Hunt to hunt through blood a place, 

To chase celebrity, and incur disgrace ; 

With Spence's plan he of his hook's the baiter, 

To act the patriot's part, and prove the traitor. 

The lawyer swears, while he expounds the laws, 

" He'd rather die, than lose his client's cause." 

How well he acts his part ! how just his plea ! 

He'd rather die, than he should lose his fee. 

To the sick room how sly the doctor steals, 

With what concern his patient's pulse he feels ; 

How well he acts his part ; how well he feigns ! 

" He feels, in person, all the sick man's pains ;" 

How grieved he seems ! — how overwhelm'd with sorrow ! 

How vex'd, lest he should lose his fee to-morrow. 

Kneeling before an aged lady's shrine, 

Her lover vows — " She's bless'd with charms divine ; 

He loves not gold, he disregards her pelf, 

And loves her more than all things — but himself:" 

How well he acts ! how well he plays his part ! 

His acting's honour'd with the lady's heart ; — 

Soon the dame sees how apt we are to err, 

She finds that he loves all the fair but her. 



PROLOGUE. 337 

Believe not, fair ones, every tale you hear, 

Nor to all suitors lend a listening ear ; 

Whene'er they talk to you of wounded hearts, 

Of beauteous goddesses, and Cupid's darts, 

Trust not their arts, be of their ways observant, 

They are all actors but — your humble servant. 

I am no actor, but the play to-night — 

To name it puts me almost in a fright ; 

'Tis certainly far fetch'd, as often said is, 

And dearly bought, and therefore fit for ladies. 

Twas fetch'd from Athens — it will make you chuckle — 

'Twas dearly bought — ere to our task we'd buckle, 

It cost us many a rap across the knuckle. 

But ne'er mind suffering in so good a cause ; 

We'll bear it gladly, if we've your applause. 



EPILOGUE, 

Spoken in the character of Mitio, by Mr. John Hughes. 

My son is lost ! the comfort of my life, 

For he has taken to himself a wife ; 

As my son's gone to taste of wedlock's bliss, 

To follow his example's not amiss ; 

To brave all dangers, make a desperate stand 

On the forlorn hope of hymeneal land. 

In early life, I have been gay, I own, 

Knew all the ways and frolics of the town ; 

Led a free, easy, fashionable life, 

Unburthen'd with that awkward clog — a wife ; 

But though in freedom thus my youth I pass'd, 

In my old age I have been caught at last. 

If only ills to married men belong, 

'Twas well I happen'd to escape so long ; 



338 EPILOGUE. 

If blessings in that state are met with ever, 

'Twas better sure to marry late than never ; 

Nor with derision treat grey-headed beaux, 

For golden hills are sometimes tipt with snows ; 

Then candidly allow me to discover, 

The boasted virtues of an ancient lover ; 

An old beau's constant, he will prove no rover. 

And all the wise ones will prefer, no doubt, 

The old with money to the young without ; 

And should the aged husband boast no riches, 

The wife, at least, may hope to wear the breeches ; 

If he be cross, this comfort he may give 

To his fond wife — he can't for ever live. 

Kind and indulgent, should he still give way, 

To all she wishes, or to do, or say, 

She may while living, govern him, with art, 

And should he die, she need not break her heart ; 

But dry her tears, and wed a younger man, 

And in his arms take comfort, if she can ; 

For to the prudent, in the mart of love, 

The old and young of some advantage prove. 

Next, since old husbands thus, you'll say, you praise, 

What can be said of wives of ancient days ? 

Then since I took an old wife to my arms, 

I beg leave briefly to describe her charms : 

Though she may, haply, give me some vexation, 

She does not leave me subject to temptation, 

Then at my cot I fear no beau's arrival, 

For all her charms are mine, without a rival ! 

If I can't comfort her, whene'er she pleases, 

Still, I can cry, " God bless you," when she sneezes. 

She never plagues me when she at the worse is, 

With babies, midwives, lullabies, and nurses ; 

To much expense she puts me not in dress, 

Pleased with the fashion of our old Queen Bess ; 

She often rails at men, and sometimes strikes them, 

And never favours them unless she likes them ; 



EPILOGUE. 339 

And should she take a little of the creature, 

Her tint's so good, it never spoils a feature : 

And when that way she goes astray the most, 

Of her good spirits she may safely boast, 

And to her cronies the advantage tell, 

Of taking comfort and of living well. 

If these advantages the old profess, 

What are the charms which younger nymphs possess ? 

If lovers thus you press the old to wed, 

What can in praise of younger nymphs be said ? 

How would you argue with unwedded swains, 

In praise of younger dreams, to cure their pains ? 

Why, faith, their beauty needs no praise of mine, 

Art's of no use to set off charms divine ; 

Fresh as the morn, and beautiful as day, 

They want no words their merits to display ; 

They their own worth unfold on nature's plan : 

View them, and then resist them, if you can. 

Marriage with one of such unrivall'd worth, 

Must sure be heaven, if possible, on earth ! 

Look but beneath the lady's fan, and try 

The charming fascination of her eye, 

Then if you can, retain your liberty. 

Faith, 'tis no credit to a wealthy land 

That such fine goods should still remain on hand ! 

But I must gaze no more, lest I should shame 

My faith once promised to my ancient dame. 

Fair ones, forgive me if your charms impart 

Some sparks of love's fire to an old man's heart. 

Nay, now, I must determine to retire 

In time, lest you should set me all on fire. 

Could you not quench the flame, you will no doubt, 

Fan it, at least, to try to put it out; 

For your fair hands, and your applauding breath, 

Must this night sentence me to life or death. 



340 



PROLOGUE 

To Terence s Comedy of Eunuchus, acted by the Scholars of 
Lampeter School, in the Town Hall, at that place, in the 
summer of the year 1819, spoken by Mr. John Hughes, leading 
on the stage a wooden figure dressed as a fashionable lady. 

As all old things are now thought out of date, 

And new inventions puzzle every pate, 

Great men turn bankrupts, to preserve their riches, 

And beaux wear stays, and modern wives the breeches, 

When vessels voyage not by winds but vapours, 

And all our bloods on wooden nags cut capers,* 

We too, to merit your applause to-night, 

A novel object offer to your sight; 

For we would wish to hit on something new, 

Therefore present a wooden wife to view. 

A Bradu-glossides I think's the name 

By which our artist would denote the dame ; 

For modern mechanists so much excel, 

They've form'd a female who is ne'er unwell, 

Who holds her tongue, and who will ne'er do wrong, 

Who'll never sell her virtue for a song ; 

Who, mildly moving by mechanic laws, 

Incurs no censure, covets no applause. 

A silent dame who scandal never spoke, 

Her mind unmoved, her heart a heart of oak, 

Whene'er her husband scolds, poor quiet creature, 

She ne'er replies, nor seems to change a feature ; 

She never wastes his wealth in vain expense, 

Or, by her talk, betrays her want of sense ; 

She never frets, or wishes he were dead, 

Or wounds his fame, or ornaments his head ; 

* Velocipedes were in high vogue at this period, amongst a set of 
creatures called dandies.— Editor. 



PROLOGUE. 341 

Or weeps, or swoons, or stratagems displays, 

To gain her purpose by sinistrous ways; 

She never proves to jealousy a prey, 

Nor tries to drag his sly intrigues to-day; 

But still contented, or at bed or board, 

She ne'er usurps the province of her lord ; 

At table fix'd, though not much skill'd to carve, 

She ne'er seems likely or to want or starve ; 

A beau still ready, with affected air, 

May do the honors of the goose or hare ; 

Politely help the lady of the house, 

And, in attention, emulate her spouse. 

At tea or coffee she can fill her place 

With all a modern well-bred lady's grace ; 

To servants leave, or housekeeper, the care 

The board to regulate, the tea prepare, 

The guests attend, while she, exalted soul, 

With matchless grandeur seems to view the whole ; 

For modern dames with family affairs 

Ne'er wish to swell the volume of their cares : 

In these pursuits mean husbands may delight, 

These would not suit my consort of to-night; 

Careless of censure, negligent of praise, 

Unmoved and dignified in all her ways ; 

And should a play, like ours, to-night be seen, 

My wife might answer to fill up the scene ; 

But for the merit of the play or players, 

Such things ne'er prove the object of her cares; 

For well-bred ladies of the present day 

Can ne'er attend to what the actors say ; 

Thus like my consort, dramas, old or new, 

Without emotion they appear to view ; 

Though, such in classic learning is her fame, 

Latin and English are to her the same ; 

But you, ye fair ones, in whose awful sight 

We tremble at our enterprise to-night, 



342 PROLOGUE. 

No doubt, will make it manifest enough 
That you were fashion'd of more feeling stuff; 
In candour's scale, then, kindly deign to weigh 
All that we humbly try to do or say ; 
Our faults forgive, our good intent admit, 
And as our advocates, not judges, sit; 
Prove that your hearts and sentiments are good, 
You were not form'd of either stone or wood ; 
Then fairly show, by your unfeigned applause, 
You follow nature, not mechanic laws 



EPILOGUE, 

Spoken by Mr. John Hughes, in the character of Parmeno, and 
Mr. John Davies, in the character of Pythias, a maid- servant, 
leading a wooden figure dressed as a modern dandy. 

PARMENO. 

Of all your senses have you lost the use, 
A wooden dandy for your beau to choose ? 
With that vile figure why degrade the stage ? 
This towers o'er all the follies of the age ! 

PYTHIAS. 

Have not automata of late been seen, 
Self-moved, incessantly to crowd the scene ? 
If knowing artists wooden steeds provide, 
A wooden jockey why should you deride ? 
This form may, too, a mirror prove to you, 
Where your own image you may chance to view. 

PARMENO. 

So full a headpiece, and a form so bright, 
No doubt must needs my jealousy excite. 

PYTHIAS. 

Such forms, to wisdom making no pretence, 
Are better far than fools pretending sense. 



EPILOGUE. 343 

PARMENO. 

With such partiality, since here you've led it, 
Then take your lifeless, senseless thing, and wed it. 

PYTHIAS. 

Is then a wooden spouse so novel, pray ? 
Whence then came all the blockheads of the day ? 

PARMENO. 

Rich is the blessing of a wooden spouse, 
No doubt felicity will mark your house. 

PYTHIAS. 

He'll ne'er with jealousy my peace molest ; 

Grant him but wealth, and I'll supply the rest ; 

For without wealth, what prudent wench would wed ? 

Who'd take a ruin'd spendthrift to her bed ? 

A wooden head provided with a dower, 

Excels a fop unprincipled and poor ! 

Fill but his head with gold instead of brains, 

'Twere better far than what your head contains ! 

PARMENO. 

At table he'll discover vast address ! 

PYTHIAS, 

He'll ne'er offend by drinking to excess. 

PARMENO. 

He'll shine, no doubt, in social conversation ! 

PYTHIAS. 

He'll ne'er disgust by vulgar affectation. 

PARMENO. 

In the gay world, he all the world will charm ! 

PYTHIAS. 

'Twere well the gay world were as void of harm. 
He'll ne'er engage in fashionable strife, 
Nor wound his friend, nor take away his life, 
Debauch his daughter, nor seduce his wife ; 



344 EPTLOGUE. 

He'll ne'er keep mistresses, nor waste his wealth 

In vile pursuits, injurious to his health ; 

He'll never visit taverns, nor delight 

In gambling houses to consume the night; 

He'll never sell, nor mortgage his estates, 

To sail in pleasure-boats to foreign states ; 

He'll ne'er engage a coachman at a stand, 

To give him lessons to drive four in hand ! 

He'll ne'er talk treason, nor disparage all 

Those whom the wise, the good, and virtuous call ! 

Ne'er will he show the wittling's vain pretence, 

By want of modesty his want of sense ! 

PARMENO. 

When will you cease all mortals to bespatter ? 

PYTHIAS. 

Whene'er they cease to furnish me with matter. 

Let men but cease to act and reason wrong, 

And women soon would learn to hold their tongue ; 

Then for your former faults by care atone, 

Forgive our foibles, and forsake your own ; 

For spite of all our prudes' conceit and pother, 

The sexes first were fashion'd for each other. 

T' assist each other through the vale of life, 

Nor pain by sorrow, nor molest by strife ; 

But on the journey every aid impart, 

To guide the gay, and heal the wounded heart. 

From every scene to learn to have in view, 

To shun what's evil, and what's good pursue. 

Then rashly blame not what you've seen to night, 

But veil what's faulty, and applaud what's right* 

Lampeter, June, 1819. 

FINIS. 



C. W hitting ham, Tooks Court, Chancery Lane, London. 









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